His goal is to find the best possible technical managers so the shuttle and the space station, especially the shuttle, are operated in the safest possible manner for the rest of their service lives. |
I'm not sure this is a hobby for him. I think this is his next big idea. |
It doesn't hurt, ... The money they provide is very important to the Russians in keeping their capability for human spaceflight active. |
It doesn't hurt. The money they provide is very important to the Russians in keeping their capability for human spaceflight active. |
It has several elements to it. One is to say that the people who did Apollo were pretty smart, |
It is clear that the White House has made a policy decision that we are going to honor our international agreements on ISS, and we are going to continue to fly the shuttle in order to launch the international components. |
It's a schedule that is as much political as it is technical. It reflects the partners' concern about the shuttle because they've moved the launch of the partners' modules up to the earliest time. |
It's been pretty well coordinated among the centers. It appears to provide for a smooth transition. |
It's like an upside-down bungee jump. There'll be a few moments to view the Earth and then you come right back down. |
It's not clear yet whether the 2007 budget will allow a CEV by 2012. There is a complex interplay between the fiscal 2007 budget in particular, the date for initial CEV availability and the potential for accelerating return to the Moon. |
Most people use a figure like $400 [million] or $500 million [per launch]. Anyway you look at it, it's a lot of money. |
Most recommendations are coming out of the VA. |
My guess is that he'll have some parachutes involved that will slow it down before it lands. It's not such a radical idea. |
The [original] numbers that NASA gave to the White House were that shuttle would cost about $5.5 million per launch and the launch rate would be anywhere between 50 and 60 launches a year. |
The bill is an affirmation of support. But it's also a challenge to the administration to pony up for the transformational space program it outlined two years ago. |