Senate Press Conference on NASA Reauthorization Bill

[dks13827]

I cant wait to see that big guy launch !!!

[dks13827]

I cant wait to see that big guy launch !!!

[sirachman]

Yay we saved jobs by moving money from commercial space to funding dead-end heavy lift funding. Even if we build the thing it will take so much to support its infastructure that we wont have money left to pay for missions. Good luck SpaceX and Orbital, your our only hope for possibly the next 20 years or more...

[DukeNukemIsHere3]

I am extremely pleased with this.

[charles8499]

The Direct Launcher design is superior and it is the fastest and easiest way to migrate from the shuttle to Orion.

[entropy504]

NASA should maintain a research and development role. Designing, building, and manitaining repetitive launches to LEO is a commercial activity. Look at Apollo; NASA did the R&D, provided the funding, and commercial built it. Look at SpaceX- they've come a long way and done an admirable job as a small commercial entity.

[fireking9934]

@entropy504 yes.. all LEO stuff should be done by commercial companies

BUT

beyond low earth orbit, should solely be NASA's job

[frbe0101]

Way to go Shuttle Derived booster!

[moneyman10k]

18:42 "75 to 100 metric tons... built over the course of those 6 years within a budget of 11.5 billion dollars... that is doable."

[moneyman10k]

16:12 "...no matter how you try to create it, you cannot get the capacity to go in that direction without solid rocket motors. they are the ones that have the heavy lift capacity that this bill preserves"

[sirachman]

@moneyman10k ?! Saturn V was liquid.

[BernzSed]

@sirachman Saturn V was also REALLY expensive.

[moneyman10k]

13:25 "after speaking with experts in utah, it is their conclusion that these requirements [heavy lift and exploration beyond low earth orbit] can only realistically be accomplished by using solid rocket motors"

thank god for those experts in utah

[heroineworshipper]

Gonna to skim a little off of Fannie Mae's entitlement to fund the heavy lift vehicle?

[Chrisjr2007]

FINALLY!!!!!!!!!

[quantumG]

my take: the White House was trying to make a nice apple pie but Congress insisted they throw a big piece of pork into it.

[pacificguitarist]

@quantumG

Yes and no. Though I would rather that half the funds for COTS would not have been cut for this bill.... still maintains the best of Obama's plan. This pretty much IS obama's plan... with the exception of the HLLV. ( Yes I know there are other differences but this is the biggie.)