Space, or Headlines Can Be Deceiving
So, President Obama released his new NASA budget yesterday. The first headlines were along the lines of "Moon Program Canceled." These headlines were deceiving at best. As the closing line to this Popular Mechanics post says, of the budget, "it points the way to truly sustainable development in space." (Gacked from The Usual Suspects. Basically, what the budget does is:
1) Kill the Constellation program, which was overbudget, late and a step backwards technologically.
2) Direct NASA to fund alternative, private ground-to-orbit technologies.
3) Create incentives for NASA and private industry to develop the kind of sustainable technology we'll need to actually exploit space. These are technologies like refueling in orbit and closed-loop life support systems.
In short, it's the right thing to do. So, write your Congressman and ask them to support this budget.
1) Kill the Constellation program, which was overbudget, late and a step backwards technologically.
2) Direct NASA to fund alternative, private ground-to-orbit technologies.
3) Create incentives for NASA and private industry to develop the kind of sustainable technology we'll need to actually exploit space. These are technologies like refueling in orbit and closed-loop life support systems.
In short, it's the right thing to do. So, write your Congressman and ask them to support this budget.