New Manned Spaceflight Strategy

[Highkeas]

It looks very much like NASA is going to cancel the Constellation program (a follow on program to the Space Shuttle)

http://www.space.com/news/nasa-commercial-spaceflight-awards-100202.html

I've been working on this program for two years and can't say I'm surprised for lots of reasons - insufficient budget being one of them.

[EconomyClass]

It looks very much like NASA is going to cancel the Constellation program (a follow on program to the Space Shuttle)

http://www.space.com/news/nasa-commercial-spaceflight-awards-100202.html

I've been working on this program for two years and can't say I'm surprised for lots of reasons - insufficient budget being one of them.

Blame the taxcuts and foreign wars. They are eating up everything around them.

[HalcyonDays]

Blame the taxcuts and foreign wars. They are eating up everything around them.

The budget pressures on the US economy have less to do with tax cuts and foreign wars and far more to do with the relentless rise in entitlement spending commitments, ie. social security, Medicare and debt interest.

In fact, NASA is getting an increase in its budget under the current proposals. I actually think it's a good idea for NASA to get out of manned spaceflight over the long run - better to encourage the more entrepreneurial, cost-efficient and creative efforts of the private sector. I think we may be surprised - despite the current gloom, human spaceflight may be quite routine by the late 2020s and 2030s.

[Highkeas]

.................... far more to do with the relentless rise in entitlement spending commitments, ie. social security, Medicare and debt interest.
.....................

I don't believe that national debt interest is an entitlement but is is a disgrace that it exists and that it cost taxpayers $383,400,000,000 in FY 2009 (and most of it went to foreign investers).

[HalcyonDays]

I don't believe that national debt interest is an entitlement but is is a disgrace that it exists and that it cost taxpayers $383,400,000,000 in FY 2009 (and most of it went to foreign investers).

It's not strictly entitlement spending, I agree, but it's obligatory as opposed to discretionary, ie. we have no choice but to pay it, it's a legal obligation, as with Medicare. (And, further off topic I know, but in fact the amount of the national debt being funded by foreigners has fallen in the past year, despite what we keep being told - in any case, it doesn't matter to whom it's paid, it's still government spending...)

[Alessandro]

Well, back to the 1970ies, between Apollo last flight and first shuttle mission, no US national entered the last frontier.

[APS]

Once you surrender the lead in this industry, it's lost forever. China and India (as well as Europe) will greatly benefit from the loss of "competition" so to speak.

This puts the future of the ISS firmly in non-American hands; especially with the development of a manned ATV variant and the Japanese equivalents.

[HalcyonDays]

Once you surrender the lead in this industry, it's lost forever. China and India (as well as Europe) will greatly benefit from the loss of "competition" so to speak.

That assumes that over the long run transferring to the private sector from the public sector is likely to be a loss. It may be, but I think it's equally likely not to be. At the present, with an under-resourced public effort, and almost zero interest in space on the part of the present US Government, Congress and the American people, let's go private.