NASA Rolls Out Space Exploration Roadmap 128
MarkWhittington writes "NASA and the space agencies of a variety of countries, including members of the European Union, Canada, Japan, Russia, India, the Ukraine, and South Korea, have rolled out the latest version of a space exploration roadmap (PDF). NASA and its partners have created two scenarios, called 'Asteroid Next' and 'Moon Next.' This represents the continuing argument over which destination astronaut explorers should go to first. Should it be an Earth approaching asteroid, as President Obama insists? Or should it be the moon, as many people in Congress, NASA, and NASA's partner agencies suggest? In any event, all roads lead to Mars in the current plan. Both visits to an asteroid and to the moon are considered practice runs for what will be needed to go to Mars."
The roadmap is nothing (Score:5, Insightful)
NASA needs guaranteed funding and a minimum of Congressional oversight.
Re:The roadmap is nothing (Score:5, Insightful)
Sadly AC has the truth of it. This plan should be labled "Current roadmap for the next 20-30 years... unless whoever is elected to congress and the presidency in the next couple of years change their mind. again."
Mining already a success. (Score:5, Insightful)
The rovers were a success. Now it is time to test our ability to create a long term orbital platform. I'm for the asteroid. China has shown an interest in going to the moon. Let them perform those experiments.
The REAL Roadmap (Score:5, Insightful)
1. Adopt a plan
2. Spend a ton of money
3. Abandon achievements and the plan.
4. Repeat.
Re:International coordination? (Score:2, Insightful)
Somehow the idea of international cooperation seems to make sense in the modern era. Although we Americans rightly take pride in the Apollo program, the space race was really a product of the Cold War. It ruled out multilateral efforts because the whole point was a race to beat the Russians. That doesn't make sense today; nation-states don't have the same kind of rivalries. The spirit of "advancement of human civilization" I associate with space exploration does seem more fitting as an international enterprise. It gives me a warm fuzzy.
That said, the reality of international undertakings tends to fall short of what I consider ideal.
International cooperation, as in the International Space Station aka cluster fuck #1 ?
No, if the US wants to go back in space it has all the means at its disposal. You just need a coherent political vision that doesn't change every day. Stop spending trillions of dollars in meaningless wars, in meaningless security state programs etc... Raise taxes, make americans feel proud of their country again and set your eyes on the moon and mars. One generation ought to be enough to send astronauts to mars, keep a fully inhabited moon base etc... And for god's sake, once you're there stay there. Don't dismantle yet again the space program once you achieve the goal. Its stupid that of all the apollo missions, only 3 were really scientific and only one carried a real scientist. Less pilots, more scientists in space.
Re:The REAL Roadmap (Score:4, Insightful)
That's the roadmap summary. Here's the detailed roadmap:
1. Adopt a plan.
2. Make the plan more ambitious at the insistence of the President and Congress.
3. Receive 30% of the required funding from congress, 25% of which is non mission-critical pork.
4. Overrun lowball funding by a factor of 3.
5. Congress cuts off funding before real accomplishments can be met.
6. Repeat
Re:International coordination? (Score:5, Insightful)
The catering?
Re:I really (Score:4, Insightful)
We choose to go to the moon in this decade, and to do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.
I truly pity you, sir. I'll get my grandchildren to send you a nice postcard from Alpha Centauri.
Re:I really (Score:5, Insightful)
Only true-believing sci fi space adventure magical religious cultists are gullible enough to swallow the "space exploration" excuse.
Boy, you are brave. Dissing 98% of the Slashdot demographic.
And while you're correct on purely rational grounds, humans aren't purely rational and canning manned flight for just robotics leaves a lot of emotion on the ground. Given that space exploration really comprises a trivial amount of human and financial capital, all things considered, the added emotional involvement of human spaceflight is more than justified.