Well done US govt.

[XabbaRus]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8321697.stm

I must say not surprised but I am disappointed.

Why not suggest making it a world wide venture.

[TarJak]

'Cos then it wouldn't be the National Aeronautics & Space Administration and IASA or WASA doesn't have the same ring to it.

[SS107.9MHz]

Well don't you guys think the private market is a solution for everything? Well then, there yo go!

[Torplexed]

Personally, I am a fan of not sending people to Mars until our robot probes have built a five star hotel there.

[Onkel Neal]

Wait? Are you applauding the US Govt for bailing on a new booster?

[Steel_Tomb]

You would think that they don't want any space flight to go on the way they're going. They're scrapping the shuttles, want to scrap the new rocket and they're also talking about dismantling the ISS too. FFS just disband NASA whilst you at it too.

Space flight and exploration is key to the survival of this species, if we don't get our act together soon then we'll be stuck on this rock when it all goes tits up and we start dieing off. This planet isn't going to support us forever, we will have destroyed it and then shot ourselves in the foot by not investing in ways to escape. At present there is no way to escape Earth's gravity without using a lot of rocket fuel, so when we run out of fossil fuels and haven't invested in other means of getting up there we are f**ked to be honest... and then what will we do when there are too many of us? Oh that's right, kill each other... game on.

The technology is there to make space exploration happen, but the religious nuts and the tight arse w****** in government don't want to make it happen. If we could go to the Moon in the 1960's I think we can do a much better job now... we just need to give NASA a half decent budget instead of forcing them to cancel projects.

[SS107.9MHz]

Originally Posted by Steel_Tomb

You would think that they don't want any space flight to go on the way they're going. They're scrapping the shuttles, want to scrap the new rocket and they're also talking about dismantling the ISS too. FFS just disband NASA whilst you at it too.

Space flight and exploration is key to the survival of this species, if we don't get our act together soon then we'll be stuck on this rock when it all goes tits up and we start dieing off. This planet isn't going to support us forever, we will have destroyed it and then shot ourselves in the foot by not investing in ways to escape. At present there is no way to escape Earth's gravity without using a lot of rocket fuel, so when we run out of fossil fuels and haven't invested in other means of getting up there we are f**ked to be honest... and then what will we do when there are too many of us? Oh that's right, kill each other... game on.

The technology is there to make space exploration happen, but the religious nuts and the tight arse w****** in government don't want to make it happen. If we could go to the Moon in the 1960's I think we can do a much better job now... we just need to give NASA a half decent budget instead of forcing them to cancel projects.

No Steel Thomb, that's not essencial for this species survival, you've been watching to many eps of "Andromeda", it's just a question of taking care of our environment and cleaning our act up together...

Although I don't see anything wrong with the investment on rresearch mind you, quite the opposite! I also think there would be nothing wrong with a Global Space Organization or something like that...

[Onkel Neal]

Originally Posted by Steel_Tomb

You would think that they don't want any space flight to go on the way they're going. They're scrapping the shuttles, want to scrap the new rocket and they're also talking about dismantling the ISS too. FFS just disband NASA whilst you at it too.

Space flight and exploration is key to the survival of this species, if we don't get our act together soon then we'll be stuck on this rock when it all goes tits up and we start dieing off. This planet isn't going to support us forever, we will have destroyed it and then shot ourselves in the foot by not investing in ways to escape. At present there is no way to escape Earth's gravity without using a lot of rocket fuel, so when we run out of fossil fuels and haven't invested in other means of getting up there we are f**ked to be honest... and then what will we do when there are too many of us? Oh that's right, kill each other... game on.

The technology is there to make space exploration happen, but the religious nuts and the tight arse w****** in government don't want to make it happen. If we could go to the Moon in the 1960's I think we can do a much better job now... we just need to give NASA a half decent budget instead of forcing them to cancel projects.

I agree. Maybe not necessary for the species but WTH is wrong with America building on its incredible legacy and achievements? I think it's pretty pathetic to let the Chinese take the lead in space.

[XabbaRus]

Originally Posted by Neal Stevens

Wait? Are you applauding the US Govt for bailing on a new booster?

I was being sarcastic. I think the Aries prgramme is a good thing..

[Onkel Neal]

Oh...sorry I think it is too, what happened to the country who put a man on the moon in 7 years? That's good stuff, we need more of that spirit.

[AngusJS]

Originally Posted by SS107.9MHz

No Steel Thomb, that's not essencial for this species survival, you've been watching to many eps of "Andromeda", it's just a question of taking care of our environment and cleaning our act up together...

Although I don't see anything wrong with the investment on rresearch mind you, quite the opposite! I also think there would be nothing wrong with a Global Space Organization or something like that...

I don' know - if we have a collision with an asteroid, or a gamma ray burst fries us, we'll be wishing we hadn't left all our eggs in one basket.

Maybe NASA should be split into two agencies, one to concentrate on unmanned exploration, and one for manned space travel in the solar system, for starters anyway. And maybe Congress should actually make rational demands on that agency and actually fund it sufficiently to meet those demands. Because right now, I don't know what we're supposed to be doing just floating around in low earth orbit.