Derek Webber writes that settlement has to be an objective of our space policy.
The Augustine panel noted that if the goal isn’t space settlement, there’s no point in having a human spaceflight program at all. The private people (such as Elon Musk) get this, but Congress continues to fail to do so.
What’s not to like in a book like that
Sorry, but I think that this would be disrespectful to both Hugh Dryden and Neil Armstrong. Leave the name as it is, and come up with something else to name after Neil, that would be worthy of him. Like the first lunar base. Assuming NASA ever builds one. Which seems doubtful.
Clark Lindsey, who got an early draft (and the most recent one), has a review of the book. There are only five days, left, and we’re still short over a thousand dollars. And the more I can exceed the goal, the more I’ll be able to promote this.
[Update early evening]
I just realized that I’ve left out a crucial quote in the book, from an eighties teeshirt. Not sure where to put it, though, but I definitely have to include it.
“The Meek Shall Inherit The Earth. The Rest Of Us Will Go To The Stars.”
Might even be on the cover…
What if NASA could figure out the math?
Well, Alpha Centauri in two weeks is nothing to sneeze at. Of course, this could be a problem:
…other scientists have raised concerns that warp drive could be potentially very dangerous, potentially destroying the destination in its path.
Luddite whiners, standing in the way of progress.
Ari Armstrong is favorably impressed:
The long-term benefits of an off-world colony to our lives would be enormous. Not only would such a colony open the solar system to commercialization, reaping unimaginable wealth from the development of vast resources and energy; it would also establish a new frontier with new possibilities for human liberty. Both in terms of industrial development and political innovation, a colony on Mars could be as important as were the British colonies in America. The future of human progress, and possibly even the future of true freedom, may depend on off-world colonization. In any event, human life certainly will be greatly enhanced by it.
I wish that more people understood this.
Decides to see what’s up with space.
It’s hard to know where to start, but she should have at least gotten a second opinion…
What is the future of reusable launch vehicles?
It should be clear by now that it’s hopeless to expect the government to do it.
It’s dead, Jim. Give it to FAA, and let Davidian run it again.
…will be Lamar Smith.
Sigh. I wonder who will be the chairman of the space subcommittee?
Someone should point out to him that the SLS is eating the budget for a lot of JSC programs, and that it isn’t needed to launch Orion or to go beyond LEO.