Our Future in Space
Somewhere along the line, NASA lost the dream. You know the one. Boldly going where no man had gone before.
Nit picking by small minds. Government bureaucrats with no imagination. Something killed the dream.
In less than a hundred years, the Vulcans come. That’s the Star Trek mythos, and, you know what, why not?
Space flight is a risky business. That shouldn’t stop us. We need to differentiate between calculated risks and stupid risks. It’s the stupid risks that are biting us in the ass, over and over. We’ll find that stupidity was the cause of the Columbia accident. America should be angry about that. But we shouldn’t turn away from space because of idiots.
The shuttle should stop at the Space Station on every trip. It would allow for external inspection of the shuttle. It would familiarize more space crew with docking procedures at the Space Station. It would allow more supplies and equipment to go to the Space Station. And, it gives the guys on the station visitors, which I’m certain they would welcome.
Amish Tech Support blogs about the word “shuttle” and I agree with him. Let’s use the damn things for what they were meant for, and do the science at the Space Station. Mars awaits, and we’re not going to get there using a thirty year old taxi.
Let’s also find a new technology to replace the tiles. This is a really old idea, takes loads and loads of time on the ground, and we can’t fix them in space at all. Despite the upgrades, primarily to computers, the shuttle fleet is twenty to thirty year old technology. Time for new ideas, and the quickest fix is the tile concept.
Then, let’s get the big corporations involved. Cut rate pricing for trips to the Space Station. Housing and assistance with research. Government gets to share any work, not keep, not hide, but share. There’s a ton of research that could be being done up there, but we have to break up the little “Shuttle club” that has formed. Let’s cycle folks through there a little bit faster, with a little bit more support. Don’t blame the Russians here. There have been holdups on their end but it’s NASA that’s restricting access to the Station. You shouldn’t have to train for three years to go to the Space Station for a month’s worth of research.
The stars are there for us to reach. Once we get out there, the only limits are the ones we set. Barring a run-in with the Borg or its equivalent, the Final Frontier is ours to take. So let’s shake the dust off NASA, clear out the cobwebs and deadwood, and start reaching for the stars.
