NASA to return to the Moon

[Sandman]

There's probably a thread about this somewhere, but I haven't seen it.

BBC Link

Your thoughts?

My gut instinct is 'waste of money'. This mission, not space exploration in general.

Go straight to Mars, no detours.

[Whaleboy]

My gut instict is "cool as f*ck! "

On the other hand it is financial idiocy, but then most things that are "cool as f*ck" are.

NASA

[Sandman]

It's retro-cool.

[Winston]

About time, about f'ing time. It'll be 48 years since anybody was last there.

Nice to have a guy in the White House to push these things forward.

I've seen NASA's presentation of the programme at their website, and as always, I'm highly excited about it all. I'm just a bit worried that it is open to cuts and downscaling, lowering of ambition - like Apollo - once a new administration needs the money, or feels the need to change the focus of NASA. These things have an awful long implementation phase, that's the basic condition, but it still worries me.

The biggest challenge is probably keeping the public interest going along the way - and not least once the first objectives (lunar landings) have been achieved.

[DanS]

Personally, I think NASA's manned program should be put on ice.

Failing that, I don't mind some exploration and the Moon and Mars are good candidates. That said, I think they're going about it all wrong. They should be looking at ways to encourage a non-NASA thriving space economic and engineering ecosystem. This would help them do what they want to do much more cheaply. But the plan they've got basically just picks back up with Apollo 18 and crowds out this potential ecosystem.

[Cort Haus]

So 50 years after NASA went to the moon, NASA are .... going to the moon.

[Verto]

Originally posted by Winston
Nice to have a guy in the White House to push these things forward.

You think Bush really gives a **** about space exploration, except to the extent that he can use it for PR or a distraction?

[Joseph]

The only Pres. that we have had that care anything for space was LBJ. Kennedy went because of the Russian. Nixon hated space and stop it after Apollo 17. Ford was not around long enough. Carter wanted peace in the world. Reagan said one time he was to old so forget it. Bush 1 had a war to fight. Clinton wanted more woman to screw. Bush 2 wanted Saddam dead for trying to kill Dad. So here we are.

[Winston]

Originally posted by Verto
You think Bush really gives a **** about space exploration, except to the extent that he can use it for PR or a distraction?

Yes I do. His change of direction at NASA specifically towards this program is the reason you have this thread in which to show your ignorance about his motives.

[Winston]

He-he.

[Verto]

Originally posted by Winston


Yes I do. His change of direction at NASA specifically towards this program is the reason you have this thread in which to show your ignorance about his motives.

Oh give me a break. The man just has an insatiable need to spend money. Not that this is necessarily a bad program to spend money on, but to think that Bush has any kind of interest in space exploration is stupid.

[Vanguard]

The reason we stopped going to the moon was the fact that there is no reason to go there.

[PLATO]

The establishment of a semi permanent base is reson enough for me. Over time. it will hopefully begin to build some industry and begin to realize the vast potential of space exploration.

[Solomwi]

Are we going to do it for real this time?

[:) Smiley]

Well, with the way money is being thrown around for projects outside of the regular budget, for once funding may not be a problem.