America’s Return To Space Proves The Success Of Privatization

First, you would want to reach higher than LEO.

Second, you could carry payloads other than people.

Third, there are several reasons we will want more capacity. The possibility of an asteroid surprise, dealing with Space trash, more ambitious science programs, and more.

Fourth, we don't want to become the Portuguese of Space.

 

The biggest problem facing long range space exploration is payload capacity, we need more powerful rockets to leave Earth with bigger payloads.

 

What for other than for communication and observation satellites.

Like what and for what reason, it is HUGELY expensive to send something into even LEO.

Why do you need humans for that?

They had something of tangible value back then.

 

To go where and do what in return for the expense that we can't do with robots and rovers?

 

A contractor responding with a bid to a completely detailed spec is a world totally different and much easier from developing the design and specifications in the first place,though both are critical pieces.

 

Who do you think designed the space vehicles?

 

you can't give Trump credit if you want to say this is the private sectors victory - Trump is the Government

besides, spacex existed long before Trump was President

 

Over the years mostly contractors did the design with other contractors sometimes doing the construction, all under the direction of and the system architecture done by NASA -- my best guess.

 

They just funded it and paid for the equipment. Even the proposals for how to do it came for the aeronautics companies and many proposals were were made Bell, Boeing, Northrup. Lots of it coming from their earlier research in supersonic flights. One of the big differences between then and now is then NASA bought the "stuff" from the private contractors it became theirs, now they are renting space on the private contractors stuff.

 

It has very little to do with the current administration. Privatization was started under Bush, than it was championed by Obama. He got into a fight with the Republican over the Moon/Mars program which he wanted to cancel and the Reps stalled the privatization, so the Moon/Mars program came back and the Reps allowed the privatization.
The commercial crew and commercial supply contracts were signed during the Obama administration.
The current administration has nothing to do with it.

This is a Obama Program, like it or not.

Well done President Obama.

 

Why do you think that's "beyond the ability of any business"? SpaceX has already done more to reduce the cost to orbit than any government entity has in decades. They're the ones developing reusable rockets.

 

After the Apollo missions ended NASA lost it's way.

 

Hey Rodb do you have a copy of



It's a BIG book size and content wise and probably the most comprehensive books on the subject in the general public. Have had it for I bet since it was published in 1982. I read parts at a time. But does go into the beginnings and the synergy between the private contractors and NASA and let's not forget the military. This launch took me back to those Mercury days.

 

Sad but true. The solar and planetary exploring with satellites and telescopes and robots has been a great success and now even our out of solar system satellites are returning data. Compared to manned space flight they are cheap and safe and very efficient and more and more as technology advances. There are SO many problems with manned space flight and the farther you go the more they mount. And I was enthralled as a kid and young adult starting with the earlier rocket testing through Mercury then Gemini then Apollo. Awaited great things from a space lab and space station but it has gotten to the point of what are we doing up there for the money being spent and the dangers imposed. What great thing have we gotten out of manned LEO that we couldn't get from satellites and robot craft which could conduct experiements. I love the videos from up there, the technology is exciting but where should we put the limited dollars to the most effective use, the most payback? Remember when we were told they would be making all these mircle drugs in near zero gravity? Do we have any yet? Same with metals, have any new metal alloys that have been put to earthbound use been discovered up there?

 

But they didn't develop the technology, they just adapted it, and to be honest, it has me worried. In a design space as demanding and unforgiving as a launch vehicle, engineering a reusable vehicle is a couple orders of magnitude harder than a single use device.

It's one of the those situations where getting out and pushing can get awkward.

It's going to cost serious coin to develop a fundamentally better way to get into Space.

 

I can give you one. A friend of mine is a research Prof at the School of Mines in CO. Used to work for Rockwell, Space Shuttle program.
He does no research into Bio Metals and stuff like this.
Bio Metals are used for joints etc.
They had some experiments on ISS and he is really exited about the metals he got back, ceramic titanium and other wild stuff.
Now they have to find away to produce larger quantities in Space.
Same problem with medicines, they have done the experiments, but now you have to find a way, the money etc. to produce in Space.

 

I think I must not be understanding what point you're trying to make. They landed a Falcon 9 on a barge at sea. No one had done anything like that before (at least, AFAIK). How did they not "develop the technology" to do that? They're well on their way to developing a fully-reusable spacecraft (Starship), and they've already re-used both their Falcon 9 boosters and their Dragon spacecraft. What's NASA done in the last two decades? What have all the governments in the whole world done to lower the cost to orbit in the last couple of decades?

 

Look at the early days of NASA.
A whole lot of sh*t blew up. It took a lot of time, money and a few lives to develop that tech.

I doubt it will, in the long run, save money. But we will see.

 

SpaceX already did develop a better way to get in LEO and lowered the price by around 40%, while making a profit.
Landing and reusing the first stage, bringing fairings back for reuse, reusing its supply vehicle for the ISS.
In the future the maned Dragons, will be reused as supply vehicles for the ISS.
Those are technology leaps

 

If you think NASA simply sent a letter that said 'build me a rocket and spacecraft, then send me a bill', you are completely incorrect
If you contract with someone to build something and they do, then you own that something hook line and sinker. Depending on the contract terms the contractor might or might not have any rights to it.

 

Do you mean the space shuttle doesn't count???

 

The shuttle was Nixon's idea. He wanted it to look like he was saving money. It wound up costing significantly more.

After Apollo, there was a lot we could have done. Instead, Nixon mostly wanted the cut the budget. He killed funding for Hubble. The guys on the project finished it on their own. That's why it was more or less ready when we decided to use it.

 

For the money spent what did the shuttle missions really accomplish?

 

What does this have to do with the thread??

 

To go to Mars or Europa. as far as what we get in return is a sense of accomplishment.