Popular Mechanics Orion article

I think that NASA needs to spend more money on COTS to accelerate the T-Space and SpaceDev vehicles. Signing space act agreements is all very well and a step in the right direction but metal needs to be bent and something produced.

I don't know about SpaceDev, but t/Space partners AirLaunch are building and testing the QuickReach (I) rocket for DARPA, while Scaled Composites are building White Knight 2 (and SpaceShipTwo ) for Virgin.

These projects are doing a lot of the development work, and the profits may provide the capital, for the CXV/QuickReach II/VLA in the t/Space COTS proposal.

Hello, Andy Hill,

I merely was seeing something like a portfolio in the mix - like cautious people buying assets at the stock exchanges spread their invetsment over a mix (or set) of companies and stocks to reduce their risk(s).

This might be behind NASA's mix at present. Since NASA as well as t/Space were kept tight lips completely like Burt Rutan until the Space Act Agreement was closed successfully it might be that t/Space already is talking to investors and even might have got a few already the funds go from aren't sufficient yet.

What might NASA do if one of the Ares-rockets or even all of them and the Orion-vehilce would have to be cancelled? The budget could be used then for more COTS-companies - might they do that?



Dipl.-Volkswirt (bdvb) Augustin (Political Economist)

I think NASA would still press on with Orion but possibly reduce its capabilities so that it would launch on an existing booster or more likely push the in service date out even further. I think that this is the last chance for NASA to produce an in-house vehicle, if they fail this time I can see them being relegated to being just an advisory body for human space flight.

I think the time is ripe for the private sector to take over the space flight business.

On the Science Channel next week, new Space shows showing Ares V in flight (CGI)