11 thoughts on “Next Step, Or Swan Song?”

1. If they insist on using these monsters for a heavy lifter, it will be so heavy that it means a new crawler and crawlerway at KSC.

   Is that a bug or a feature? The more money is needed for infrastructure modifications, the less money there will be for R&D and for keeping the standing army around. And that means it will take longer for the thing to become operational, which should make it easier to kill. That is why DIRECT was so opposed to the 5 seg boosters and the 10m core.

2. Funding private industry can also be viewed as a jobs program. Maybe a more efficient one.

3. Funding private industry is what NASA has been doing for a very long time, just with very little competition and with very little to show for it.

4. I wonder how much they spent on the AC units, particularly considering the chilling process began over a month ago. Couldn’t they have just waited to perform the test two months maybe three from now and saved the cost of AC units and energy (and carbon footprint)?

   I know the answer… it’s the Federal Government, and the test needed to be performed this fiscal year, which ends September 30th, and thus before temperatures are likely to naturally cool enough. As the article points out, it is not like these tests right now are detrimental to the schedule of a vehicle, since we don’t even know what vehicle they plan to build.

5. I agree that further development is a waste, but running the test is probably the cheapest way to dispose of the segments.

6. Funding private industry is what NASA has been doing for a very long time, just with very little competition and with very little to show for it.

   I am not sure that I would use the word private to describe any industry with its head that deeply in the trough.

7. “running the test is probably the cheapest way to dispose of the segments.”

   That is the best reason for wasting any more money on this stupidly huge SRB that I’ve heard so far.

   Thanks Will!

8. Isn’t inertia a wonderful thing? If only the government would specify the results they want rather than the method of achieving such. Then allow for competition. Then remove the government???

   Imagine if taxpayer money could only be spent when the general welfare and not just voting blocks benefited.

   I think a strong case for space activity for the general welfare can be made… they certainly haven’t done it so far.

9. For those interested, here was a 1987 proposal for building a HLV around the SRB for Star Wars.

   http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/baranmdd.htm

   It was intended to launch laser battle stations…

10. My understanding is is was a one-off launcher that would have destroyed it’s pad. It made the SRB-X look sane and desirable.

    That is a lot of shit to go thru to orbit 50 tons.

11. Mike,

    I suspect that is why the USAF didn’t follow up on the proposal 🙂

    Tom

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