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• Commented on NASA's Newest Exploration Analog

  Indeed, survival isn't generally what you're testing in an analog. This is certainly important information and experience, but, really, the big question is whether a crew can make it to a solar system destination and be scientifically and technically useful...

• Commented on Concerns Raised Over House NASA Authorization Bill

  Our entire human technological society is based off the results of generic R&D. However, if folks look at Bobby Braun's plans, etc, you can see that nobody is talking truly generic. The R&D will be focussed on critical needs -...

• Commented on Buzz Says Send English Speakers to Mars

  Ummm, Canada isn't just an English-speaking country! We're officially bilingual, and truly multicultural, thanks! And anybody who's been to an ESA meeting knows that folks from a wide range of language backgrounds can work together well, technically, eh?...

• Commented on NASA's Electrodynamic Tether Propulsion Demonstration Mission

  The satcom, WX and elecro-optical satellite systems in orbit are a trillion dollar system with hundreds of billions to potentially in excess of a trillion dollars per year of generated benefit. Tether power is one way to greatly extend system...

• Commented on Senate and White House (Apparently) Compromise on NASA Policy

  What is worrying is that the cover language seems to state no funding increase. So effectively both old and new destinations, in terms of advanced tech to get there and explore, are deleted, and then we have an HLV going...

• Commented on Asteroid Lutetia Revealed by Rosetta

  The truly massive resources available at both M-types and C-types will justify going, by orders of magnitude compared to the cost of a visit. The complexity of rapidly analyzing less differentiated bodies such at Lutetia will justify sending humans. If...

• Commented on Asteroid Lutetia Revealed by Rosetta

  It's a little more complicated than that for both Phobos and 21 Lutetia. They both have C-type features, but many anomalies that imply they've both not that simple. So 21 Lutetia could help inform us on Phobos, and help us...

• Commented on Asteroid Lutetia Revealed by Rosetta

  The VIRTIS data will be fascinating. 21 Lutetia is both potentially high in resources, and an important science target for early solar system science. The similarity in looks to Phobos is quite intriguing....

• Commented on Charlie Bolden: Stealth Middle East Diplomat?

  This is excellent, and one of the most complete descriptions of the new vision out there! It's interesting how other news agencies can extract the core of something, in ways US ones can't. And for those who seem to want...

• Commented on Oops. Looks Like Elon Musk Isn't Broke After All ;-)

  Awesome! Was watching TV channels predicting gloom and doom about that IPO, yesterday. Go Elon!...

• Commented on White House Press Briefing on Space Policy Announced at Last Minute

  Some excellent words in the new NSP. You really get a taste about moving spaceflight from the government domain to the domain of industry and academia. Finally getting the US economic sphere out into the solar system, and not just...

• Commented on Kepler Data Dump - And NASA Ignores it (Update)

  Yup, exactly. Plus other objects in the observed systems themselves. Even releasing data next year is seriously jumping the gun for anything in the terrestrial class....

• Commented on Kepler Data Dump - And NASA Ignores it (Update)

  Yup, indeed, more, with some of the CCD noise issues that were found post-launch. It's not incredibly evil for the team to want to have first stab there. However, more fanfare today from SMD would have been nice! There's some...

• Commented on Water Worlds

  Well, actually, this is from Apollo and lunar meteorite data, and is simply hydroxl in the deep lunar interior. Though, of course, still interesting!...

• Commented on Building Orion

  Fly by wireless will reach HSF someday! Some of us have been working on those concepts for well over a decade, starting with ESA Wireless work, like this work: http://conferences.esa.int/03C20/s2b-03.ppt (blowing my horn a bit, as a lot of the...

• Commented on Nelson Begins Formal Push For Extra Shuttle Flight

  Yes, that is unfortunately true. One little result of Ares 1-X. But even with an abort to ISS, you still need to get the extra two Soyuz up pretty quickly....

• Commented on Nelson Begins Formal Push For Extra Shuttle Flight

  That's what I was worried about! So a 4-person ride, needing two Soyuz and corresponding R7s ready! That's an awful mess. Unless ISS timelines are arranged so that these systems can be ready to then fly as usual ISS CRV....

• Commented on Nelson Begins Formal Push For Extra Shuttle Flight

  Hmm, but then there would be no LON available for THIS mission. If there's a failure before reaching ISS, the only rescue option would be a Soyuz TM. That's not going to bring back 4 crew, Unless they use both...

• Commented on Astronauts At The Controls: 2010 Vs "2001" (in 1968)

  Oh, it's still pretty cool. But on big stations, etc; I think this is something Clarke himself would admit, going by Preludes and his other books - Computing and Communication happened! The amount of human presence in space required for...

• Commented on Heavy Lift Launch System and Propulsion Technology RFI

  Even now we need a cheaper, safe way to get mass into orbit - without that, I very much doubt we can even afford the exploration you speak of. But that's where we need to do some thinking. In-space systems...

• Commented on Heavy Lift Launch System and Propulsion Technology RFI

  Maybe one day there will be industry up there, and we won't have to lug stuff 'up the hill', but for now, everything is down here - and getting it 'up there' is the problem. There are hard problems vs...

• Commented on What Happened to "Apollo on Steroids", Mike?

  Yup, indeed, the second choice to LOR was the EOR Tanking Mode, which is effectively the New Vision-style orbital refuel. The EOR Connecting Mode (effectively CxP!) was the least wanted option....

• Commented on Whitesides Departs, Winterton Replaced

  Exactly! Two of the best minds in the business! The folks who come out against folks like these, and then also complain about processes and thinking inside NASA, really need to go back to the blackboard on this. We need...

• Commented on What Happened to "Apollo on Steroids", Mike?

  Yes, exactly. In addition, Von Braun himself argued against big boosters as the way to implement long-term space exploration. Many of the concepts in the new vision were exactly what he was pushing for back in the 50's and 60's....

• Commented on Lunar and Asteroidal Water Enables Human Exploration

  Remember that President Obama has not cancelled long-term plans to go the Moon. Just like in HSF Option 5B, and as detailed in break-outs on April 15th, it works out that going BEO before the Moon works out to be...

• Commented on Bolden Update Today

  Exactly! One of the single craziest pieces of engineering in CxP was choosing the launchers before the payloads! You work on understanding the requirements of the new in-space systems first, and, from there, you choose, and engineer, launchers to meet...

• Commented on Pete Worden Receives Arthur C. Clarke Award

  Pete keeps defining the future, especially when it's come to NEOs and the New Vision....

• Commented on Bolden Update Today

  Yup, these are pretty much the variations in HSF option 5B (with the "Moon after FlexPath" variation)....

• Commented on Orion Launch Abort System Funding Halt

  You'd suspect the Prime would hold on to the personnel and subs required for Orion-RV, and just drop those required on LAS, though?...

• Commented on Orion Launch Abort System Funding Halt

  Yup, as @GREverett says, this is the contractor - they can do anything required to protect themselves, within reason. I suspect you'll see this for many systems and contractors. And, as @Maxwell says - you don't need the LAS for...