[extropy-chat] SPACE: Shuttle will never fly...

[BillK]

On Thu Feb 19, 2004 04:08 am Robert J. Bradbury wrote:
> Ok, here are two very interesting articles on why the shuttle
> may never fly again and why it is essential to have them service
> the Hubble (by Zubrin no less...)...


This article goes along with my speculation that NASA also wants to stop
flying the shuttle. But they want to keep all that lovely shuttle budget
money. So they need some (any?) excuse to keep it.

<http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/space/02/17/russia.spacecraft.ap/>
On Feb 17, 2004, Russia announced that Russian engineers have begun
design work on a new spacecraft that would be twice as big and spacious
as the existing Soyuz crew capsules. The new craft will be able to carry
at least six cosmonauts and have a reusable crew section.

<http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/R/RUSSIA_SPACE_DREAMS?SITE=PAPIT&SECTION=HOME>
On Jan 20, 2004 after Bush announced his Mars plan the Russians
immediately said that they had already designed a Mars mission that
could be done for $15 billion.

I do see that the Russian space industry would really like to get a
share of all that NASA funding, Given the current craze on out-sourcing 
in USA, it sounds like a good deal. No?
Or is the USA space program too tied into the military?

BillK