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The best thing for space exploration and technological advances is competition.

We develop, tested, and launched the Apollo program in 8 years because of competition. Now we simply work on ISS.

Maybe China starting a manned space program will help us -- maybe it will generate much-needed competition. The ESA is our lap-dog, and Russia (aside from using capitalism to fund its program) is too. If China says they will put a man on Mars in 2017, we'll get one there in 2015. Otherwise, who knows when we'll get off of our bums and start working towards a clear goal.

We also need to re-investigate things like Project Orion and Project Daedalus -- Resonable interplantary propulsion. Forget 8 months to Mars. Try 8 days.

Abandon prohibitive treaties that prevent space development. Get hotels into orbit -- it will only make spaceflight cheaper. Sure, at first only yuppies with 50M to blow will be able to afford it, but as the launch vehicles become more efficient, the price will drop considerably. You and I will never be able to afford it in our life (well, I won't), but it would be nice to see someone get there in our life.

The biggest problem with the space program is funding. I'm a big fan of private funding (a good little conservative), and private funding can go a long way in space exploration (SETI and The Planetary Society are all good examples). I am not opposed to public-private partnerships (Tito?). I have trouble thinking the space program should be entirely publicly funded, but I rather see NASA receive full funding instead of than entities like the NEA/NEH, which do little to advance anything -- at least the space program gives us nice spin-offs.

Sorry for the rant... These are just my views on the space program.

In case you care, I work for Goddard SFC on MODIS ( http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ) and my fiancee is working on her physics/astro degree. We both have strong interests in the space program.

” In case you care, I work for Goddard SFC on MODIS ( http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ) and my fiancee is working on her physics/astro degree. We both have strong interests in the space program.”

A conservative at FreeRepublic that works on equipment to learn about change in the environment? Do I have that correct?

If I am correct what is your take on global warming? I looked through some of your old posts to see if you said anything, I can not find anything on it. Thanks.

much-needed competition

It might take that to get us moving. And we might not win the race. Continental shelf treaties are very touchy subjects. Some countries, in South America for example, are concerned that American technology and finance is so far ahead that America will pick all the plums before other countries even get a shot at continental shelf development. That could happen to us, China or someone could pick off the easy plums in outer space before we even get launched. It's going to be an uphill fight for a long time if we lose that one.

"We develop, tested, and launched the Apollo program in 8 years because of competition. Now we simply work on ISS."

Apollo cost HUNDREDS of billions of dollars in 2002 value. Operational Lifespan of the Apollo program: 6 years (1968-1974)

ISS at Worst Case projections is somewhere around 90 billion dollars. Operational Lifespan of the ISS program: 20 years MINIMUM. ISS wins! It is actually quite inexpensive, and is a safer, more capable system.

Could ISS be better? Absolutely. Matter of fact, if the "I" in ISS had never been added, that would have been great. Talk about killing competition, now we have a program that bickers internally to determine its destiny. Madness!

"If China says they will put a man on Mars in 2017, we'll get one there in 2015."

I hope they mount a serious effort - I'd love to help squash them. You have the right take there.

"We also need to re-investigate things like Project Orion and Project Daedalus -- Resonable interplantary propulsion. Forget 8 months to Mars. Try 8 days."

This means strapping a cluster of nuclear weapons to your butt, and surfing the explosions. No thank you. However, nuclear power is great for plasma fusion thrusters, such as the VASIMR rocket engine in development at JSC. Not 8 days to Mars, but somewhere between 30 and 90, which isn't shabby.

BTW, hello to Goddard from JSC!