MAIN ARTICLE: Political Cartoon: Barack as Spock.
In good taste or bad taste? leave a comment.
In a strong editorial in the Orlando Sentinal, NASA Chief Administrator, Michael Griffin, again comes under fire.
Poll Results: Yesterday's poll, "Should America fully fund Asteroid detection Satellites and Telescopes?" Scroll down to see how members of the DKOS voted.
Star Trek: In the News. "PopSci's Adam Weiner did some calculations to see if young Kirk could survive ... ". Scroll down to read the lastest, click subscribe to get the news.
Yesterday's interesting Comments: "Plus... She was incredibly foxy." - FischFry
Today's Poll: ARES I - Love it or Leave it.
On Dec 08, 'Americans in Space' ran a similar poll: "ARES V - Love it or Leave it" DKOS members loved it with 41% voting to keep the program going. Scroll down to take the poll.
First, the political cartoon:
Barrack as Spock
In a stunning editorial today in the Orlando Sentinel: "We think: NASA's chief should welcome Obama team's scrutiny" NASA's Chief Administrator, Michael Griffin, and the Ares I rocket came under fire again. In very straight language: "The blame goes to NASA Administrator Michael Griffin."
The Sentinel had reported earlier on an altercation between President Elect Obama's transition team leader, Lori Garver, and Dr, Griffin on Dec. 11th. Sentinel Staff Writers, Block and Matthews reported:
NASA chief Griffin bucks Obama's transition team
"Tempers flare at event"
"Tensions were on public display last week at the NASA library, as overheard by guests at a book party.
According to people who were present, Logsdon, a space historian, told a group of about 50 people he had just learned that President John F. Kennedy's transition team had completely ignored NASA.
Griffin responded, in a loud voice, "I wish the Obama team would come and talk to me."
Alan Ladwig, a transition-team member who was at the party with Garver, shouted out: "Well, we're here now, Mike."
Soon after, Garver and Griffin engaged in what witnesses said was an animated conversation. Some overheard parts of it.
"Mike, I don't understand what the problem is. We are just trying to look under the hood," Garver said.
"If you are looking under the hood, then you are calling me a liar," Griffin replied. "Because it means you don't trust what I say is under the hood." "
'Americans in Space' covered this in: NASA's Griffin denies tension with Obama's transition team The NASA Chief denied there was a problem and that seemed to be the end of it. Until today.
EDITORIAL (full transcript)
"For NASA, the transition between the administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama has been a bumpy ride. The blame goes to NASA Administrator Michael Griffin.
Last week the Sentinel reported that Mr. Griffin, trying to protect the space agency's Constellation program, was obstructing information-gathering by Mr. Obama's transition team. With its goal of sending astronauts to the moon and Mars, the program is considered Mr. Griffin's signature project.
Mr. Griffin vehemently disputed the report. But a NASA spokesman confirmed to The Washington Post that the administrator had told the head of the transition team, a former associate administrator at NASA, that no one on her team had the engineering qualifications to evaluate the agency's choice of rocket for the program.
Controversy has been building for months over that rocket, known as Ares:
*The Government Accountability Office found in April that Ares (air-ease) suffered from dangerous design flaws. NASA said the flaws could be fixed.
*The Sentinel reported in June that some NASA employees and contractors had been working on their own time to develop an alternative to Ares that they said could be built cheaper and sooner. Mr. Griffin said it was time to stop studying options and get to work on Ares.
*In October, another problem with Ares -- a risk of crashing into its launch tower during liftoff -- came to light. It could take a year and tens of millions of unbudgeted dollars to fix. NASA officials downplayed the problem, but an agency engineer who quit the Ares program told the Sentinel it was "time for a rethink."
As NASA prepares to come under the direction of a new president, Mr. Griffin might believe he is saving the Constellation program by shielding it from outside interference. In reality, he does the program and his agency no favors if he stands in the way of a robust review of the current plan and any alternatives.
Without such a review, the Obama administration might be hesitant to commit the billions of dollars needed to carry out the program. Its transition team already is looking critically at chronic cost overruns at NASA.
We have long agreed with Mr. Griffin that it's important to shorten the time between the grounding of space shuttles, now set for 2010, and Constellation's launch, expected in 2015. In the gap between programs, U.S. astronauts will have to rely on spacecraft from an increasingly unfriendly Russia to maintain their access to the $100 billion international space station.
Florida also has a big stake in this issue. A shorter gap will mean fewer jobs lost at the Kennedy Space Center.
But if Ares is seriously flawed, pushing ahead with it would do more damage to the program than switching to a rocket with a better design.
Claims that other rockets would outperform Ares are worth fully investigating. If the transition team doesn't have the expertise, it could name an independent panel of experts to do the job. Mr. Griffin shouldn't have a problem with that. Such a review might vindicate his judgment.
Despite his extensive and impressive credentials as an engineer and scientist, it's not clear whether Mr. Griffin will keep his job under a new administration. Regardless, he's not in a position to say "trust me" to the new administration -- not on a decision that involves billions of taxpayer dollars and the space program's future."
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FIRESTORM DOESN'T END:
There are many complaints against the Ares I, thrust ocillations that would shake it apart, not enough lift capability, the orion capsule is over weight and now it's the Ares I will hit the launch stand.
The Americans in Space Diary has consistantly been against this rocket. NASA should not be launching astronauts into Low Earth Orbit (LEO), they should be buying tickets from American commerical launch firms. President Elect Obama, after Jan. 20th, should direct NASA to fully fund the COTS-D program. This would allow for the creation of Commerical Astronaut Launch Services.
There was a very complete response regarding the Ares I today on Jeff Foust's Space Politics, you can read it in the comments section under TOPICS: Ares I.
Here is a very brief video on the Direct 2.0 option: (42 secs)
Learn more about the nuts and bolts of Direct 2.0 - Direct Launcher
PAGE 2:
NASA'a soon to be retired Space Shuttles are looking for a new home.
Want a retired space shuttle? They're up for grabs
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – NASA's soon-to-be-retired space shuttles are up for grabs.
The space agency said Wednesday it's looking for ideas on where and how best to display its space shuttles once they stop flying in a few years. It's put out a call to schools, science museums and "other appropriate organizations" that might be interested in showcasing one of the three remaining shuttles.
Beware: NASA estimates it will cost about $42 million to get each shuttle ready and get it where it needs to go, and the final tab could end up much more."
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In other NASA news Space.Com reported about the new Space Toilet that was sent to the International Space Station.
"Astronauts aboard the International Space Station hooked up their brand new space toilet this week, but it's missing one last touch: A simple door, for privacy.
The $19 million space commode's curtain-like door was left off intentionally pending the completion of other work on nearby equipment early next month. But mission managers may move up its installation to jump-start use of the orbital toilet.
"Today the toilet's just wide open, and so it's not in use just yet," said Kirk Shireman, NASA's deputy space station program manager, in a Thursday briefing. "Mechanically and fluid-wise, it's fully functional today."
The Russian-built toilet is the second commode to be installed aboard the space station. Astronauts delivered the new toilet to the station's U.S. segment last month during an extreme orbital makeover to prime the outpost to double its crew size up to six astronauts next year"
POLL RESULTS:
Yesterday's poll was very conclusive:
Should America fully fund Asteroid detection Satellites and Telescopes?
87% Yes, nothing can be more important, increase funding now.
09% No, we have to fix things on the ground, we can fund this at a later date.
03% No Opinon.
There was one voice who had reservations with the poll:
"Really squeezed me on the poll this time! Other things are more important, but I don't agree with the "need to fix things on the ground" point of view either...so I went with No Opinion.
NEO detection, study, and deflection is worth spending money on, certainly more than now, but we still need to push on manned access too." - SJLeonidas
STAR TREK: In the News. Star Trek's Nurse Chapel Dead At 76
Can Young Kirk Really Survive the Jump from the Car?
"PopSci's Adam Weiner did some calculations to see if young Kirk could survive the car jump in the new Star Trek trailer, failing miserably. We have the real answer in our own video."
YESTERDAY'S COMMENTS:
A tip of the hat to Casual Wednesday for a nice eulogy:
"RIP: Majel Barrett - An important and inspiring voice silenced."
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bobinson
"2nd Lady of Star Trek: 7 of 9 -
7 of 9 fron Star Trek: Voyager. Aka Jeri Ryan. Aka the reasons that we have Obama as President. Indulge me.
Wiki says it best
Throughout the marriage, Ryan and her husband [Jack Ryan] took turns commuting between Los Angeles and Chicago for their careers, but finally divorced on August 27, 1999. Although Ryan mentioned in an interview for Star Trek that the frequent separations had been difficult for the marriage; the reasons for the divorce were kept sealed at their mutual request.
Five years later, when Jack Ryan's [04] Senate campaign began, the Chicago Tribune newspaper and WLS-TV, the local ABC affiliate, sought to have the records released. Both Jeri and Jack agreed to make their divorce records public, but not the custody records, claiming that their release could be harmful to their son.
On June 22, 2004, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert Schnider agreed to release the custody files. The decision generated much controversy because it went against both parents' direct request and because it generally reversed the early decision to seal the papers in the best interest of the child. It was revealed that six years previously, Jeri had accused Jack Ryan of asking her to perform sexual acts with him in public, and in sex clubs in New York, New Orleans, and Paris. Jeri Ryan described one as "a bizarre club with cages, whips and other apparatus hanging from the ceiling."[3] Jack Ryan denied these allegations. Although Jeri Ryan refused to comment on the matter during the campaign, the document disclosure led Jack Ryan to withdraw his Republican candidacy for an open United States Senate seat in Illinois. He was replaced as the Republican candidate for his Senate seat by Alan Keyes who was easily defeated by Barack Obama.
And the rest is Obama history."
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TODAY'S POLL: ARES I - Love it or Leave it.
Comparison of the Saturn V, Shuttle, Ares 1 and Ares V