Comments on: An Honorable Retirement for the Shuttle http://cstpr.colorado.edu/prometheus/?p=3874 Wed, 29 Jul 2009 22:36:51 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: Mark Bahner http://cstpr.colorado.edu/prometheus/?p=3874&cpage=1#comment-5121 Mark Bahner Thu, 29 Jun 2006 21:23:06 +0000 http://sciencepolicy.colorado.edu/prometheusreborn/?p=3874#comment-5121 I don't see the Shuttle as NASA's big problem. It's the Space Station. Here are my off-the-cuff suggestions: 1) Drop both the Shuttle and the Space Station. Immediately. Cold turkey. 2) Shift any funds that would be spent on those programs to: a) Fusion-powered rockets (because chemical rockets can never lead very far), b) Space elevators (even if fusion-powered rockets don't work, space elevators would give an extensive presence in space near earth), c) Cool robotic probes of Mars and Jupiter's moons, especially looking for life...and if possible, d) Space-based telescopes. It may not be possible to do "d" without the Shuttle, or "b" or "a". If so, well, that's too bad. Earth-based telescopes are getting pretty amazing. One thing we need to recognize is that robotic probes are becoming more and more capable, while humans will always be put at tremendous risk by forces such as cosmic rays, solar flares, bone and muscle loss due to lack of gravity, mental fatigue from long-term confined living, etc. etc. etc. So in less than a decade, putting a $1 million robot on Mars or one of Jupiter's moons will provide brainpower equivalent to a human brain...and without the need for scarce items like oxygen, water, food, and warmth. I don’t see the Shuttle as NASA’s big problem. It’s the Space Station.

Here are my off-the-cuff suggestions:

1) Drop both the Shuttle and the Space Station. Immediately. Cold turkey.

2) Shift any funds that would be spent on those programs to:

a) Fusion-powered rockets (because chemical rockets can never lead very far),

b) Space elevators (even if fusion-powered rockets don’t work, space elevators would give an extensive presence in space near earth),

c) Cool robotic probes of Mars and Jupiter’s moons, especially looking for life…and if possible,

d) Space-based telescopes.

It may not be possible to do “d” without the Shuttle, or “b” or “a”. If so, well, that’s too bad. Earth-based telescopes are getting pretty amazing.

One thing we need to recognize is that robotic probes are becoming more and more capable, while humans will always be put at tremendous risk by forces such as cosmic rays, solar flares, bone and muscle loss due to lack of gravity, mental fatigue from long-term confined living, etc. etc. etc. So in less than a decade, putting a $1 million robot on Mars or one of Jupiter’s moons will provide brainpower equivalent to a human brain…and without the need for scarce items like oxygen, water, food, and warmth.

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