Author Topic: Why I’m Glad The Shuttle Is Retiring  (Read 976 times)

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Offline rickl

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Why I’m Glad The Shuttle Is Retiring
« on: June 16, 2011, 02:24:48 AM »
A good synopsis of the shuttle's history, and why it was a disastrously wrong turn for NASA.  Hat tip Transterrestrial Musings.

Quote
Good Riddance… It has been 30 years since the first Space Shuttle was launched, and this year the shuttle program will be at an end. Although I worry about the future of NASA, I do not mourn the loss of this program. To be honest, I do not pay much attention to Space Shuttle launches, what the Astronauts are doing, or how many more launches we have left. I am a fan of the future of space travel, and that is why it is hard to enjoy the Space Shuttle, and the current manned work at NASA. The courage and spirit NASA had years ago to really push boundaries was stifled, regulated, and destroyed by ignorant politicians who believe space exploration yields nothing of great importance. The Space Shuttle, although a symbol of national pride to some, also represents a poorly made decision 30 years ago to destroy our chances of a post-apollo era. This was done by extremely limiting NASA’s budget, and forcing NASA to pour their efforts into a semi-reusable vehicle that never was intended to be NASA’s center of attention.

In this post, we will discuss the rocky history of the Space Shuttle, why NASA was forced to build it, and the promises this “Shuttle” could never keep.

The rest
We are so far past and beyond the “long train of abuses and usurpations” that the Colonists and Founders experienced and which necessitated the Revolutionary War that they aren’t even visible in the rear-view mirror.
~ Ann Barnhardt

Offline Libertas

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Re: Why I’m Glad The Shuttle Is Retiring
« Reply #1 on: June 16, 2011, 06:44:48 AM »
Yeah, they thought this "space bus" was nirvanna, instead it boxed them into a high-maintenance/low-volume system.  Great for the contractors cash flow but not so good for overall space exploration.
We are now where The Founders were when they faced despotism.