Re: NASA Encounters Problems With Ares 1 Launch Vehicle Design
- From: Charles Buckley <rijrunner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 20 Nov 2006 05:12:09 -0700
Henry Spencer wrote:
In article <MPG.1fc6ef8211931205989684@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
Kevin Willoughby <kevinwilloughby@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
I don't think NASA ought to be designing any new launch vehicles.Part of NASA's charter is to do R&D. To advance the state of the art, you pretty much have to design and fly new things.
Oddly enough, NASA's predecessor, the N.A.C.A., managed to advance the
state of art in aviation immensely despite rarely building a full-sized
aircraft. They built wind tunnels, they built model aircraft, they flew
modified versions of existing aircraft, and once in a loooong while they
built a full-size X-plane... which usually ended up in a scrapyard or a
museum within a few years, when its job was done.
At no time did they attempt to run their own airline.
NASA could do the state of the art in launchers a tremendous amount of
good by building and flying some X-rockets, to do flight tests of a long
list of interesting concepts that have never made it off drawing boards. Don't hold your breath. NASA doesn't do launch-vehicle R&D any more. In
fact, NASA doesn't really do much R&D of any kind any more -- what little
remained is being cut drastically to help finance VSE. As a friend of
mine said at Space Access last spring: "NASA is well and truly out of the
R&D business -- they're going to focus on their core competencies."
Hmm.. What are the odds that someone would be able to fly the
Linear Aerospike engine if it were not earmarked for a specific
NASA flight program?
Or, worded differently.. what would happen if someone wanted to
fly the already developed hardware? would it be possible?
Seems to me that there is the potential that a lot of specific research
items are getting buried when their overall program is axed that might
be of use in other commercial ventures not related to NASA.
.
- Follow-Ups:
- References:
- NASA Encounters Problems With Ares 1 Launch Vehicle Design
- From: Rusty
- Re: NASA Encounters Problems With Ares 1 Launch Vehicle Design
- From: Herb Schaltegger
- Re: NASA Encounters Problems With Ares 1 Launch Vehicle Design
- From: Jeff Findley
- Re: NASA Encounters Problems With Ares 1 Launch Vehicle Design
- From: Kevin Willoughby
- Re: NASA Encounters Problems With Ares 1 Launch Vehicle Design
- From: Henry Spencer
- NASA Encounters Problems With Ares 1 Launch Vehicle Design
- Prev by Date: Re: Earth w/o Magnetosphere, w/o Moon
- Next by Date: Re: OT F-117 retired
- Previous by thread: Re: NASA Encounters Problems With Ares 1 Launch Vehicle Design
- Next by thread: Re: NASA Encounters Problems With Ares 1 Launch Vehicle Design
- Index(es):
Relevant Pages
|
