NASA Builds a Cheap Standardized Space Probe

TangAddict writes "Dr. Alan Weston, who previously invented bungee jumping, led a team of scientists at NASA Ames Research Center to build a $4 million spacecraft in less than two years. The Modular Common Spacecraft Bus is designed to accept payloads of up to 50kg. and can be used for a variety of missions including a rendezvous with asteroids, orbiting Earth or Mars, and landing on the moon. When NASA officials saw the first flight test, they offered Weston and his team $80 million to use their design for the LADEE mission, which will gather dust and atmosphere samples from the moon in 2011."

Is it big enough for a dead Vulcan to fit in?

[infonography]

I was just asking.

Pandaemonium

[The Late BP Helium]

This is the first time I've heard of technology that's DESIGNED to gather dust. Usually that just happens by accident.

LADEE

[vought]

From the summary:

.... they offered Weston and his team $80 million to use their design for the LADEE mission, which will gather dust....

Well, if they're just going to let it sit around, I'll take it.

I have a lots of projects that just collect dust.

[k3ith]

How about, lets say, $20M?

Re:Pandaemonium

[turing_m]

All technology is designed to gather dust... eventually. It's called 'functional obsolescence'. The breakthrough development that separates this technology from previous technologies (such as the C64 in your attic and the 64MB thumb drive lodged somewhere behind your monitor) is that this gathers dust right away. Since this gathers dust virtually immediately, you can theoretically sell dust gatherers to consumers at a vastly increased rate.

Two words:

[Anonymous Coward]

Seriously, why didn't they start with this like 20 years ago? Basic platform with propulsion, power and communication, with a few slots for special equipment, like cameras, radars, sample collection, or whatever is needed for that probe?

Gentoo users.

Re:Bullshit!

[Oldav]

I think they only count when it is humans, rather than Kiwi's.......(:

Re:Bullshit!

[edcheevy]

Everyone knows Kiwis don't bungee jump, they bungee fall (very different, of course) because gravity is opposite down there. Or something like that... ;)

Re:$4 million to make it work...

[pipatron]

Yes, obviously, because no matter what anyone else claims, the US of A is naturally the best. The scientists in Russia was of course FORCED to work, and the scientists in USA were happy to do it! And yeah well, maybe some other countries are technically better, but that's because USA didn't want to be better. And also it only looks like they are better, but they did it in the wrong way, and if USA would have done it the same way, USA would have been even better!

Re:Bullshit!

[Walt Dismal]

The article misquotes. You see Dr. Weston was the first to invent bungee LAUNCHING of spacecraft. On the first low-cost launch, Mission Control was heard to say "WHEEEOOOO!!!!!! What a rush!!!". On the other hand, the astronauts inside the vehicle had other words to describe the experience. As this is a family newspaper, we cannot quote them here in full. However. Dr. Weston's mother was mentioned.

Re:LADEE

[Half-pint HAL]

I thought there was something funny there. $4 million spacecraft. $80 million. =>20 spacecraft? Unlikely.

But what you said makes more sense.

Of course, I could have read TFA myself, but why bother duplicate effort when someone else has already read it?

I call this philosophy Slashdot OpenRTFA.

HAL.

Re:Pandaemonium

[Anonymous Coward]

Never heard about vacuum cleaners? Your mum would be delighted to let you both meet...

Re:Pandaemonium

[Anonymous Coward]

$4 million for a vacuum cleaner?

Re:$4 million to make it work...

[mrbluze]

The Russians invented Space travel... with dogs... they were also the first in human orbit/flight...

But the Russians suck at faking moon landings.

Is it spherical?

[Comboman]

I hope the probe is spherical, because a globe-shaped space device designed to suck up dust would logically be called ... a Dyson Sphere.