America needs simple, cheap, and routine access to space more than a moon shot, then the Moon and beyond will natural goals. Similar to what is occurring with our interplanetary probes now: cheaper, frequent, and reliable. These hideously expensive single shot missions were great in the 1960s to kick start things, but it's time to move beyond that.
America Needs a New Moon Mission
11–20 of 91 posts
Re: America Needs a New Moon Mission
#12Some of the justifications in the article are running against modern rocketry: Who really thinks we can mine water on the moon more cheaply than launching it from Earth on a reusable rocket? Remember that it's not just SpaceX aiming at much lower launch costs, it's also Blue Origin.
Re: America Needs a New Moon Mission
#13The amount of money that could be saved by performing lithography in the vacume provided by space would be enormious. Too bad the cost of geting up there is also... well... enormious.
Re: America Needs a New Moon Mission
#14Agree completely that our space program needs a new significant mission to stay relevant. However, I don't think going to space matters as much as it did last century. During JFK's reign catching up in space with the soviets was more than about going to space, it was about being able to defend the country. Today I think our new Moon Mission should be about solving climate change. That's an issue the country and world…
People had the same complaint about the space program in the 1960's. That it was feel good fluff. That it was a boondoggle with no substance.
And if you watch old movies, you'll hear it echoed it many places.
Clockwork Orange has the quote from the wino:
Men on the moon? And men Spinnin' 'round the earth?
And there's not no attention paid to early law and
order no more?!
If we can confine ourselves within an encapsulated environment, and keep ourselves alive by recycling all biological exhaust, and drawing energy from highly durable, efficient power sources, and/or solar power, we can roll those capabilities into ways of life that dramatically reduce human impact on their surroundings. The two concepts are related, because space travel involves the problem of trying to replicate a sustainable terrestrial environment through artificial means.
Re: America Needs a New Moon Mission
#15The amount of money that could be saved by performing lithography in the vacume provided by space would be enormious. Too bad the cost of geting up there is also... well... enormious.
I'd think space would be, relatively, filthy for lithography. Maybe depends where.
Re: America Needs a New Moon Mission
#16Instead of putting Men and Women on Moon or Mars or Jupiter's Moon, how about the new mission be "create environment for 100 spaceX like companies to thrive" I reject the premise that government should be creating these missions or setting these big audacious goals
Re: America Needs a New Moon Mission
#17America needs simple, cheap, and routine access to space more than a moon shot, then the Moon and beyond will natural goals. Similar to what is occurring with our interplanetary probes now: cheaper, frequent, and reliable. These hideously expensive single shot missions were great in the 1960s to kick start things, but it's time to move beyond that.
"routine access to space more than a moon shot"
Agreed, but it's possible a moon mission may provide the basis for this.
Most NASA engineers in the 1960's were young, and led by hardcore dudes who lived through WW2 - they were the SpaceX of back then.
I worked in space science in the late 1990's and since then - there is a lot of grey hairs protecting their incomes, making sure they can afford to send their kids to Yale.
A more 'entrepreneurial' moon-shot, may be the shot in the arm the industry needs.
I understand that the technology may differ from 'cheap access' somewhat ... but it would also be a good staging type mission for a Mars mission.
Re: America Needs a New Moon Mission
#18How about a mission on the same scale but a little closer to home. Let's take nuclear fusion technology to the point where it's ready for commercial and residential power production!
I don't know why you are down-voted.
A 'national program' to back Fusion on the same scale that the US backed the 'moon mission' might yield much more for humanity.
Re: America Needs a New Moon Mission
#19Earlier quoted context omitted.
You're going to need to look beyond NASA for earth sciences for the time being - there's about to be a certain change in the US that has already said earth science research is to be scrapped. The new moon mission will likely literally be a moon mission, as the incoming change has alluded to. Honestly, not sure what the future is for NASA, other than perhaps the past, and a return to primarily propaganda rather than s…
I doubt that the downvotes come from people disagreeing with you. Rather, I suspect that the "certain change" references are simply off-putting. Trump. The guy's name is Trump. Alluding to it, vaguely-yet-obviously, makes it seem like you're trying too hard to sound clever.
He's not being clever. The incoming administration's own statements back his sentiment up. There's going to be more show than science. The incoming administration -- or those making up the incoming administration -- want to use NASA as a propaganda piece, not a problem solving institution.
Re: America Needs a New Moon Mission
#20Agree completely that our space program needs a new significant mission to stay relevant. However, I don't think going to space matters as much as it did last century. During JFK's reign catching up in space with the soviets was more than about going to space, it was about being able to defend the country. Today I think our new Moon Mission should be about solving climate change. That's an issue the country and world…
Earth always has been, and in all likelihood will forever be, screwed up. Climate change will never be solved until (to paraphrase a quip from memory) global inequity has been evened out to a level a Pakistani brickmaker would consider prosperity. I don't see countries with higher standards of living making those sacrifices for the greater good of our planet.
I'd sleep much better betting our species on space expansion than on sustainability.
PS: To say nothing of the possibility of peak global output. Maybe we only get one shot at the level of resources and technologies required to seed space.