I wonder if Mr Hale supports SLS?
I don't believe that congressional aides should design rockets. Nor should the OMB design rockets. The leadership of the country needs to set goals, provide resources, and let the engineers do their job. Heck, I'd hate to see the laws that most engineers would write.Remember that Norm Augustine and his commission said that the (2009) NASA budget was not enough to do anything interesting and that an additional $3B per year would be required to have a significant national space program. Anybody seen that money? Did the President propose it? Did the Congress appropriate it?Commercial LEO transportation seems to be coming along, albeit slower than we would all like. Exploration is going nowhere as far as I can tell.Pity, that.
Then, as now, a number of folks propose that the current administration reverse the old administration’s decision to stop flying the shuttle. But even in the summer of 2008, it was too late. Not technically impossible, but already past the point of financial feasibility to resurrect the program. Then I wrote “the horse has left the barn”. Now the barn has burned down.
http://waynehale.wordpress.com/2011/08/18/after-the-barn-burned-down/Mr Hale quoting Churchill - that works QuoteThen, as now, a number of folks propose that the current administration reverse the old administration’s decision to stop flying the shuttle. But even in the summer of 2008, it was too late. Not technically impossible, but already past the point of financial feasibility to resurrect the program. Then I wrote “the horse has left the barn”. Now the barn has burned down. I know - from recent posts - that's going to annoy a number of SSP guys on here, so be careful with your reactions.
The plan, such as it is, consists of looking for the entrepreneurial heirs of Henry Ford to produce the Model T. The hope is the genius of free enterprise will move us from the horse and buggy era to the gasoline alley era of space exploration. That is a good hope, but in the meantime personally, I would have kept the horse until the automobile appeared.
Ugly is ugly forever, but pursuing engineering perfection is the road to cancellation.
Quote from: Wayne Hale on 08/18/2011 02:33 pmUgly is ugly forever, but pursuing engineering perfection is the road to cancellation.Great line - that's going in my hall of engineering aphorisms. So that I may properly credit it, is that an original, or are you quoting?Noel
I know - from recent posts - that's going to annoy a number of SSP guys on here, so be careful with your reactions.
Not exactly a quotation, but definitely not original with me either.
Latest is up:http://waynehale.wordpress.com/2011/09/20/the-school-of-hard-knocks/With reference to the recent failures.
Quote from: Chris Bergin on 09/20/2011 11:47 pmLatest is up:http://waynehale.wordpress.com/2011/09/20/the-school-of-hard-knocks/With reference to the recent failures.again, words of wisdom.(been there, done that in my line of work)
In the high risk, high energy, low margin endeavor that is spaceflight, no matter how hard you try, little things are going to go wrong. What you hope is to learn the lesson before the little things grow into big things.
NASA must change or this effort will fail. I am reminded that the US Military’s requirements for its first airplane ran 2 and ˝ pages; and the requirements for the NASA’s Gemini capsule ran about two dozen pages. Simple, straightforward requirements and the flexibility to use good industry based standards could allow commercial space flight to be as successful as those programs or the NASA Launch Services program. But we are not on that path.