That would be a cold day in Hell with this gang.
Category Archives: Business
Harvard
…is finally getting an engineering school.
Not sure what the rush is. It’s only been 380 years or so since it was founded. Looks like they’re not going to have an aerospace department, though.
“Progressive” McDonalds
I think this is stupid. I’m not a huge customer, but as a result, I’ll probably start using alternatives. There are plenty of them.
In fact, one of the chains should go back to frying in tallow. It would save them money, and be in your face to nutrition quacks.
Congressional Logic
SLS behind schedule? Increase the budget. Commercial Crew behind schedule? Cut the budget.
And of course, Commercial Crew is not in fact behind schedule. If NASA is hedging its bets by buying Soyuz into 2018, that’s because, for good reason, it has no confidence that it will get the needed funding. So Congressional actions become self fulfilling.
Blue Origin
The capsule looks roomy, and has big windows.
Restore Funding For Commercial Crew
Sign the petition. I doubt if Congress will care, though.
Brian Williams
Ed Driscoll called it: He’s going to his natural home, MSNBC.
Satellite Servicing
NASA wants to set up a service station.
Seems like if this makes economic sense, it could be done commercially.
John McCain
In which he is an idiot (sorry, behind a paywall):
The head of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) on Tuesday downplayed the potential national security significance of NASA
continuing payments to Russia to get astronauts to and from the International Space Station (ISS).“I have a much bigger problem with the Russian rocket engine,” Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) told reporters at the Capitol. “I don’t see what the impact is, financially, of the Russian riding as compared with $300 million worth of rocket engines. There’s no comparison.”
But this is what I found interesting:
McCain’s counterpart in the House, Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas), told reporters Tuesday that U.S. dependence on Russia for space-related items is a national security issue. But Thornberry also said the challenge with paying for Russian rides to ISS is much like the RD-180 scenario: one faced with limited options.
“It ought to be a lesson for all of us about letting key capability atrophy and becoming dependent upon somebody else whose reliability can be called into question,” Thornberry said. “That doesn’t mean you snap your fingers and solve it any more than you snap your fingers and solve the Russian engine issue.”
Actually, we could. All we have to do is be more accepting of astronaut risk.
Light Blogging
I’ve already started to work on the project (even though I don’t get the money for a couple weeks). Re-reading the depressing NRC report from last summer. It will be my point of departure for the remix.