The future of NASA is... rockets

[unbreakable]

In an amazing echo of what scientsts said regarding NASA dumping their rocket program in favor of the Shuttle, NASA finally realizes the way to space is Rockets.

All those wasted billions, all those wasted decades.

[Daehawk]

"...........in other news..Today NASA released this quote..............."

[Jancelot]

The U.S. space program is going back to the future for its proposed manned mission to the moon in 2018.

Instead of the familiar airplane-style shuttle the world has grown used to over the past 25 years, the spacecraft that NASA unveiled yesterday looks more like the Saturn V rockets that blasted an earlier generation of astronauts into orbit as part of the Apollo program.

[Kev199]

I just can't wait to take the space elevator up to a gigantic space station where I can walk around and after an hour decide that space is pretty darn boring.  I'll then think about how I could have better spent the money on a vacation to Bermuda.  Of course the view of Earth would be pretty cool so I'd take a digital photo of it and then I'd set it as my background and avatar.  Everyone would be impressed by that!

[unbreakable]

I think it's the martians.  They didnt want to see us in space, so they infiltrated NASA and made them kill what was, up to that point, a very successful space program.  Now those Martians have had decades to build up their invasion armada in the asteroid belt, and here we sit with no space ships.

[CeeKay]

I think it's the martians.  They didnt want to see us in space, so they infiltrated NASA and made them kill what was, up to that point, a very successful space program.  Now those Martians have had decades to build up their invasion armada in the asteroid belt, and here we sit with no space ships.

What a vivid imagination you have.  You should come to D.C. and share it with us....

[Eco-Logic]

Man I heard this story on NPR the other day and couldn't help but laugh.  

Why in the world is NASA going backward.

There are private companys that are far more innovative than NASA nowadays.

[RedJak]

NASA Plan

I don't think this comes off as too huge of a step back.  If anything this should get them back on track toward a real plan while capitalizing on what they learned during the shuttle phase.  Perhaps the time has come for commercial outfits to start handling Low Earth Orbit stuff and get NASA back to doing the far reaching ideas.

[unbreakable]

Oh, quite the contrary.  Sorry if my post came off that way, but I personally don't view rockets as taking a step back.  In fact, after the second Shuttle explosion,  I went back to some old articles from scientists stating how the shuttle program would hurt NASA, and amazingly everything they said turned out 100% correct.

Their point still remains today- you get way more bang for the buck with rockets.  And at the time it was canned, NASA's rocket program was incredibly reliable.  Can you imagine how reliable rockets would be after decades of use, routine improvements, and new technologies?

Somebody here (I believe) posted a link about how all the info for NASA's rocket program just mysteriously got 'lost'.  Must have been the shuttle people, burning the boats after the troops land (metaphorically, of course).

I won't even get into how our current Shuttle program doesnt even come through on the concept it was created to serve.  In that respect, the X-Prize competitors are doing a far better job.

[RedJak]

Heh. looks like I inserted a tone into your original post that just wasn't there (and maybe read too quickly).  

Looks like NASA is not screwing around with this Moon idea...link

[ElijahPrice]

They got old and from the looks of it are managed for crap.  I worked with a lady at NASA Goddard for a little while, not with space exploration but on atmospheric research and some info on satellites and she just desccribed the whole organization as "a mess."

But the moon by 2018 is just kinda funny.  They are trying to re-invent the space race, or prove something again.