Will President-Elect Obama's plans for NASA keep America's Astronauts in LEO?
Results from the second in a series of Americans in Space polls.
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LEO ( low earth orbit ) is where all of America's Astronauts currently do business. Space watchers and advocates want to know where the next administration will be leading America and the Progressive Democrats.
President Elect Obama has laid out the general direction in the six page policy paper issued prior to the heavy campaigning in Florida. Will he continue President Bush's VSE and the constellation program or will he cut, postpone, NASA manned flight past LEO.
Obama did get support from names in the commercial space arena, Peter Diamandiswell known for the X prize that brought us Space Ship One. Also Gov. Bill Richardson, who would like to see SpacePort America get on the federal gravy train in some way, shape or form. Could Obama's plan to reorganize NASA and change the way it does business mean a push for a higher, more visiable role for commercial space? In my opinion. fully funding COTS-D for multiple players would be a great first step.
Results for the poll, the second in a series of Progressive Democrats "Americans in Space" Polls, are in and the Moon Base wins with 30% of the vote with a Mars Base second with 22% and a Space "gas station" and new propulsion coming in third with 18%.
In the new series of Polls, "Americans in Space" Poll #2 has been completed. There were eight questions, five about landings and surface operations, two about flying to a langrange point and one on the construction of a LEO Fuel Depot and new propulsion systems to utilize the new depot.
In the last poll there were 15 questions and all questions that didn't recieve a vote were eliminated. The number is the percentage of the vote in the current poll.
There were eight questions in three catagories:
landings and surface operations (74%), Moon landing (6%) Mars Landing (12%) Asteroid landing (2%)
FTP- Fly to point (8%), Lagrange points ES1, ES2, (4%) Lagrange point Earth Moon (4%)
LEO fuel depot and advanced propulsion (18%)
For the next poll I am going to combine FTP with LEO fuel depot and advanced propulsion. FTP will mean flying to or by any point in the inner solar system (starting with the lagrange points) without making a landing.
It can involve an egress from the space ship and can include the possible future deployment of a landing vehicle. But funding will be put on hold until a fully refuelable and reliable "fly to" vehicle is in service.
FTP will mean flying to or by any point in the inner solar system (starting with the lagrange points) without making a landing. It can involve an egress from the space ship and can include the possible future deployment of a landing vehicle.
The choices in tomorrow's Poll will be shaved down to three questions reflecting three philosphies on where we should be heading. It should be fun.
Another thought provoking comment yesterday by a commentator, Abra,
"I do have a firm conviction that the training of scientists and the search for new knowledge and better means of understanding that knowledge are essential for the continued existence of humanity. "
I couldn't agree more. My personal views on space is a species survival quesion; What species survives to become a space faring species? That species that learns how to deal with the rocks that can crash into the planet.
I do not have faith that NASA is hiding a new titanium space shuttle, all fueled up and ready for Bruce Willis to plant some Nukes.
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