----- Original Message ----- From: "Trent Shipley" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Killer Bs Discussion" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Thursday, January 15, 2004 6:05 PM Subject: Re: Easterbrook on Bush's NASA plan
> On Thursday 2004-01-15 15:08, Bryon Daly wrote: > > So far all money numbers announced for the Bush plan seem complete > > nonsense, if not outright dishonesty. We shouldn't expect George W. Bush > > himself to know that $12 billion is not enough to develop a spaceship. We > > should expect the people around Bush, and at the top of NASA, to know this. > > And apparently they are either astonishingly ill-informed and naïve, or are > > handing out phony numbers for political purposes, to get the foot in the > > door for far larger sums later. > > Yeah, the budget compared with the goal make NO SENSE. It makes so little > sense that I am drawn to conspiracy theories. > > Corona hidden in NASA psuedo-program for space biology. (Space biologists > have careers stalled for national security -- albeit really critical national > security.) > > Modeling fusion for nuclear bombs marketed as research with high energy lasers > and magnets on fusion power. > > Glomar Explorer mines Soviet sub, but the world is told it is vacuuming > manganese nodules. > > Absurdly low price tag of $12G for space vehicle->moon base->manned mars > expidition hides what? > -- I have a hunch that strategic planners at Shrub Co have a defense > initiative that needs a B-I-G reliable booster. Once they get their lifter, > will the rest of the project get forgotten? > I've been following this story since it leaked last week. What I've been hearing is that not only will this end up an international effort, but the initial lifters are going to be (I think) Ariane 5s and Protons. I think we will likely have to wait a few weeks before more details shake out. But as things stand, any *new* crewed vehicles won't be *new* technology, just modifications of older designs so the costs *should* be reducible. And if the propulsion units are assembled in orbit or at L1 (as some rumors have it) there could be further cost reductions. I'm not claiming that there are not aspects of this plan that strain credulity, but I am saying that we haven't seen a blueprint yet. Just a rough sketch on a napkin, if you will. xponent Mars, bringer Of Budgets Maru rob _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
