Big space update

[aremisasling]

Okay, space news.

So launch costs have gone up everywhere with possible benefits for private space.

Russia's rockets had been heavily subsidized under the USSR, which is breaking down, and all the old bread and butter craft in the US like Atlas and Titan are running out of parts that are simply not being made anymore or are discontinued entirely.

Comments

[seanorange]

I keep wondering about our dwindling fossil fuel supplies, and wondering if (in a bit of existential postulation), such a boon of resources was meant to extend our existence beyond that of this planet rather than leaving us fat and complacent at the cost of the continued perpetuation of our species. The yolk of our future civilization is being squandered on a chick that would rather remain in its shell

[aremisasling]

I'm actually at least partly in favor of the mikedamek view of the space issue in that we need to solve our own problems before we look off planet and screw up any others. I think we need to do both, really, but rather out of interest and not out of necessity in the case of space travel

[seanorange]

I'm referring to the rocket fuel. Right now the only technology we have to break earth orbit is Newton's third law of motion -- igniting a fuel source with such a fierce reaction that it overcomes gravity. It'd be nice to wait until we've matured enough, but I don't think our fossil fuels will last that long, and once those are gone I'm not aware of any methodology of getting into space.

~Sean

[bigscarypanda]

correct me if i'm wrong, but isn't rocket fuel for modern shuttles largely a chemical solid or liquid composed primarily of things like oxygen and hydrogen? or is there some sort of petroleum or natural gas involved? i guess for some of these newer methods by private companies, such as launching from high altitude, may indeed use a fair amount of fossil fuels, but i certainly hope we aren't as dependent on these kinds of fuels in the coming years.