William Brown

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• Commented on NASA Ranked #5 in Federal Government Workplaces

  "most of the people that work at NASA HQ that I know are deeply divided and unhappy at the agency's current mixed status-maybe Constellation and maybe not." At least within human space flight, I have a hard time telling whether...

• Commented on Political Commentary Disguised as a Video Game Review

  Sorry to disagree with you but I think Nye is competent and communicates well, and I think his review/editorial is right on the mark, regardless of who he is representing. He is entitled to his opinion. You are entitled to...

• Commented on Political Commentary Disguised as a Video Game Review

  The game is not a bad start but certainly in its present form is not going to hold anyone's attention (of any age) for long. The political commentary seems to be seriously prevalent in the public forums because the overall...

• Commented on Here We Go Again: Do More With Less

  No need for Orion which is duplicative and over sized for the earth to orbit mission, and no more Apollo mission models where we throw everything away on every mission. No need for an Ares 1, which was not going...

• Commented on Here We Go Again: Do More With Less

  Sounds like a logical solution is to offer the first company that can provide transportation services to ISS, upon delivery, a prize and a guaranteed contract for services. Other successful companies within a given period would get less than the...

• Commented on White House on Space: Ready, Fire, Aim

  I think that your comments are a pretty reasonably accurate way of looking at things. I would offer a couple suggestions however. What we need to be doing is trying out new kinds of technologies and techniques. Its not the...

• Commented on Why Isn't The Rest Of America Upset About This?

  Damned right !!! "NASA and its people have the ability to create the content and the messages. Put some people in charge who can do this and who have proven their abilities in these areas. Don't put a bunch of...

• Commented on Unlikely Alliances Against Obama Space Policy

  "a logical and effective space program, a mission is chosen, a plan for accomplishing the mission is developed, the flight hardware needed to accomplish the plan is identified, and technology is developed as needed to enable the flight hardware." The...

• Commented on Space Exploration Workshop Charts Online

  It looks like these folks did a lot of work to lay out the kind of projects that need to be pursued. Its not a program at this point; just a series of project studies. They did not really lay...

• Commented on Mike Griffin, Master Manipulator

  Now we know why both Armstrong and Cernan had problems telling the difference between the Vision and Constellation and why they thought Constellation was widely accepted. Two rocket engineers and a pilot, all full of themselves. Its too bad; Armstrong...

• Commented on Hearing Reaction

  A real mess; truly a disaster. Neil did better by not getting into too much detail, but by simply stating that the situation requires serious public debate. Cernan got in over his head much too quickly and lost credibility. Both...

• Commented on Moon Walkers Briefed On Internal NASA Study Results (Update)

  Moonstruck, you are correct. All vehicles are only so safe, and so you devise ways to use them appropriately and in the least unsafe manner as possible. That is what Bob Thompson said in this recent editorial. Thompson was the...

• Commented on Moon Walkers Briefed On Internal NASA Study Results (Update)

  "- President Obama isn't terminating the Shuttle; President Bush and Mike Griffin did that...." Obama turned around the direction on ISS and he needs to do the same on Shuttle so that ISS has assured support; up capacity and down...

• Commented on Moon Walkers Briefed On Internal NASA Study Results (Update)

  No, they are both on the same side. They submitted the letter saying that the Obama plan is devastating to US human spaceflight. I do not recall either of them signing the earlier letter from the larger astronaut and flight...

• Commented on Griffin: Obama Space Policy = Drivel

  "He seems annoyed that several companies are going to be developing LEO crew taxis with only $6B of federal funding between them. Maybe he is jealous that they can do with $6B that he couldn't do with $30B?" If you...

• Commented on Heavy Lift Launch System and Propulsion Technology RFI

  "Not to be negative but why would anyone at NASA or in the aerospace industry take this RFI seriously? How many times can the U.S. do this before it becomes comical?" All that much more reason to go with a...

• Commented on Bolden's Take on The Media

  I think NASA, and particularly the NASA leadership, are the ones that need to get their act together on telling and explaining the NASA story in general, human space flight in particular, and International Space Station very specifically. These engineers...

• Commented on Looking Backward - Not Forward

  Why do you think that 'commercial' providers would be any less, or more safe than a NASA-LM-ATK...vehicle ? Why do you think that this NASA led vehicle would be ready and maintained available any sooner than the mutiple providers now...

• Commented on Beyond Augustine

  Mr. Wingo makes some sense. I agree with the ideas of a Shuttle derived launcher, though am unconvinced whether it is that much easier, that much faster, or particularly whether it from a standpoint of long term cost, adaptability or...

• Commented on Moving On To New Things In Space

  The moon someday will be a great place to have a colony. But the resources we need to begin to travel the solar system are water, oxygen and hydrogen and we know we can get those from asteroids and comets....

• Commented on Moving On To New Things In Space

  If Dr. Chiao is reflecting the true feelings of the committee then I think they missed out on some points. (1) It is not simply that people are bored with the moon because we have done it before. If there...

• Commented on Ares 1-X Staging Issue

  While I cannot say that it will behave significantly differently, the entire size and shape of the nose in the vicinity of the Orion on the real vehicle is different. On 1X they used a simple conical attachment structure for...

• Commented on Ares 1-X Launch Scrubbed

  The Constellation program has cost something over $8 billion. NASA released cost data just for this flight of something close to $400 million. The dollar value has gotten a lot of [negative] attention from the press. I've heard commentators say...

• Commented on Its Up To The White House Now

  Well hopefully it is not just up to the White House now. Why would the White House know what direction in which to turn ? General Bolden needs to get some of his visionary strategic thinkers together to identify some...

• Commented on Sean O'Keefe's New Job, New Portrait

  Now Now zapkitty, Mr. Augustine said that there was no mismanagement of Constellation. Its just that after 5 years and $10 billion, essentially nothing done to date can be counted on. Maybe after another 8 years and a $100 billion...

• Commented on Doing More With Less

  This article, particularly the title, makes the assumption that the overall NASA, civilian space budget, is decreasing in some significant fashion. For the most part, dollars go to salaries and jobs. If you are not doing your job, or cannot...

• Commented on NASA Gets Project Management Nod

  NASA does have an excellent program and project management program. It would be interesting to know how many of the current program and project managers have gone through the program, or have any other training in program and project management....

• Commented on Commercial Crew Services Also Have The Right Stuff

  ErnieAcosta is right and so are the astronauts of Wall Street J. We should not be throwing away the knowledge gained on Shuttle. Its time to use that knowledge to develop a new vehicle optimized for crew travel, based on...

• Commented on Tell Us What You Really Think, Jeff

  I guess turn around is fair play. What makes Mr. Hanley think that NASA has the human capital to be able to design these spacecraft and rockets ? NASA human space flight has not designed or built a spacecraft or...