majormajor42

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• Commented on Back To The Moon - Minus The Great Big Rocket

  We've been hearing similar arguments for the past couple years. Mr. Craft certainly adds a new influential voice to the debate. We'll see. I think the less expensive, more sustainable and viable, non-BFR options won't be politically acceptable until after...

• Commented on MSL Is On Its Way To Mars

  "Elon Musk/SpaceX cheerleaders who like to brow beat the "old bureacratic" launchers" That may be a little misplaced/misdirected. A rising tide raises all ships. I'll take the bait and admit to being an Elon Musk/SpaceX cheerleader but I don't brow...

• Commented on Space Droids Using Sign Language?

  Yeah, good idea. For some reason I can't think of the part of E.T. that you are referring to. But I do remember all the hand signals in "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" (was that signing?). It would be...

• Commented on Video: J-2X Engine Test

  So what's with the Aloha shirts? Stennis Tradition? Why the periscope? Is that control room more of a bunker? How close is it to the test stand? Seems like they are making great progress. So when does the J2-X first...

• Commented on Progress Launch Boosts Soyuz Confidence Level

  I'l give Griffin and the Bush WH credit for starting the program. I'll give this admin credit for continuing it. But if Griffin really wanted to own it, he would still be selling it instead of coming out hard against...

• Commented on Progress Launch Boosts Soyuz Confidence Level

  You'll go nuts trying to play party politics here, jski. Right now it seems that the Administration is now behind SLS and GOP Rep. Rohrabacher is accusing them of hiding the fuel depot study, which could greatly benefit SpaceX. Several...

• Commented on Update: NASA's Stealth Fuel Depot Studies

  Plus, SpaceX is pretty much developing that reusability on their own dime. I'm not sure how much it is costing them since much may be piggybacked on their existing launch manifest. Even if Rohrabacher looses this battle and Congress underfunds...

• Commented on NASA's Perception of Size and Commerce

  also from #ispcs via Jeff Foust: Precourt with ATK says that they knew that something like Liberty was possible, but never really delved into it until need arose with commercial crew. Keith, I liked your twitter response of "why couldn't...

• Commented on Webb Community Webinar: Happy Talk and Denial

  been enjoying your tweets about this today. not that we really have a good answer for "what happened?"...

• Commented on Another Earth?

  can a tidally locked planet have any sort of atmosphere? I'm guessing no side question: how about a moon that is tidally to it's planet? I'm guessing maybe...

• Commented on Russia Is Bored With U.S.-Subsidized Russian Human Space Flight

  they may also see the writing on the wall that cheaper access to space is soon coming from US commercial companies....

• Commented on Today's Tabloid News: Royal Party Boy Wants to Be a NASA Astronaut

  Yes, no cutting. While maybe not a suitable choice for the astronaut "corps" (still too young for starters), he would be great for bringing attention to commercial space by first going suborbital, and then maybe to a Bigelow station down...

• Commented on Musk Talks About Getting to Mars

  I think the space business may be one of those areas where it is okay to talk about long term plans. They're still private so don't have to answer to short term quarterly report issues, yet. Anyway, he did say...

• Commented on Watching Atlantis' Return - From Orbit

  Why did they never take this type of picture before? Were conditions somehow different this time?...

• Commented on Setback for Taurus II

  More bad news for Orbital? http://www.spacenews.com/civil/110623-nasa-suspends-payments-orbital.html...

• Commented on Senator Mark Kelly?

  It might be nice to have him as a voice of reason when it comes to space policy in the Senate. Representing Arizona, which doesn't have any NASA centers, it won't just be about jobs in a particular state/district but...

• Commented on NASA to Top up USA Pension Fund with $547.9 Million

  Aerowerks, do you have a link or something that tells that part of the story? Anyway, this is bad news pretty much anyway you look at it. The workers, I'm sure, would rather just keep working than been seen as...

• Commented on Commercial Space on NBC Nightly News

  People like us have been using terms like "Space Race" to describe what is going on in the industry for some time now. I think I'm glad that MSM has picked up on it. Let's hope it just doesn't end...

• Commented on Must See Video: XCOR's Jeff Greason ISDC 2011 Keynote Address: A Settlement Strategy for NASA

  Not realizing Greason made this great speech (his other speeches are just as good), a week later I made this statement on the anniversary of Kennedy's speech: I would also like to see ISRU as being something that should be...

• Commented on Dismantling NASA

  "When a new President takes office in 2013..." politics, nothing to see here, moving on... I'll take one more peak: "and NSEA must have the authority to maintain an average employee age of less than 30." Logan's Run? Sometime in...

• Commented on JPL Screws Up Spirit Shutdown Announcement

  Easy does it Keith. Whatever is frustrating you pales in comparison to the accomplishments of this mission, especially considering that half of it still goes on. If it took a few minutes for you to get through, it is still...

• Commented on First Photos: Endeavour Launch From Balloon at 64,000 ft

  What a shot! Tomorrow's APOD perhaps?...

• Commented on Watching Endeavour From a Balloon at The Edge of Space - UPDATE

  Turns out that they really got some awesome shots this time from that balloon. A great day for high altitude spacecraft photography all around....

• Commented on Watching Endeavour From a Balloon at The Edge of Space - UPDATE

  http://twitpic.com/4yg6hs...

• Commented on Watching Endeavour From a Balloon at The Edge of Space - UPDATE

  Hope these pics are even better than the last ones. In the meantime, those pics by Stefanie Gordon are pretty sweet. First I saw her pics and was like "Cool!" and showed the guys here at work. Then I saw...

• Commented on Congress & Commercial Space: Supporters, Foes, and Fence Sitters

  based on the headline, I was hoping for an article that would list the Supporters, Foes, and Fence Sitters of Commercial Space. Did I miss it? Perhaps there is a website that has a neat list, highlighting those that sit...

• Commented on SpaceX Explains Why They Beat China on Cost

  "as well as the corporate manufacturing facility that can support up to 12 Falcon 9 and Dragon missions per year." so, if they need to grow, do we think they will expand manufacturing facilities in LA or somewhere else, closer...

• Commented on CCDev2 Selections Announced (Update)

  Saw this headline on nextbigfuture.com about this CCDev2 announcement. "BEFORE THIS DECADE IS OUT THERE WILL BE A BOOM IN SENDING PEOPLE INTO SPACE" I think this is exciting. If you consider that up to 2010 something like 500 people...

• Commented on Shuttle Missions: $1.5 Billion Each?

  Last of its kind....

• Commented on Shuttle Museum Announcement Today

  according to NYTimes, the Intrepid is getting Enterprise which is getting replaced by Discovery at the Annex. A a NY resident, I've been saying that other places deserve these shuttles. I guess Intrepid can afford to do what it necessary...