Posted by Ray Katz in Mars, NASA, current, history, moon
Veteran space journalist praises Constellation
NASA’s Constellation program, to return to the moon and go on to Mars, is under attack. There’s a commission reviewing NASA’s manned flight plans. And the commission is being told by contractors who want the business, to dump the Constellation booster and give them the business.
That would be wrong on so many levels. First, those who are seeking to derail Constellation are doing so for financial gain—not any other concern.
Second, and perhaps more important, this kind of meddling back in the 1970s caused NASA to develop the dangerous and—for deep space flight, underpowered—space shuttle. Although NASA did an admirable job with a flawed vehicle, the shuttle was a mistake.
Jay Barbree, the only journalist to cover every manned American spaceflight, spells it all out in this article online.
George W. Bush gave birth to Constellation, and gave some support to it. The Obama administration is reviewing. I hope he doesn’t kill or cripple Constellation just because it was originated by a Republican administration.
