They've finally decided to resume the shuttle program, which they have already axed. On May 15th, the US will kick aloft the Space Shuttle Discovery - TWO FULL years after the second major accident. TWO YEARS!! That's a long, long time in internet years. 1000's of products have been released... each an order of magnitude better than the previous generation. Who want's to bet that NASA's latest high-tech is even older?
But it gets better. They actually are still a little afraid that it will fail. That's why they've got the Shuttle Atlantis waiting in the wings. Just in case. BBC News reports:
As part of the tighter safety procedures, a second shuttle, Atlantis, will be prepared in case a rescue mission is required.
The launch is the first of two proposed test missions. If these go to plan then Nasa will aim to recommence construction of the International Space Station at the earliest opportunity.
Is it just me or has NASA fallen apart? They use to represent cutting edge technology, now they continue to use 10 year old technology because CMM Level 4 is a really, really difficult certification to obtain. By the time they get something approved, it's been obsolete for years. Meanwhile the ESA seems to be running circles around us, and the Chinese - yes, THE Chinese who were mostly an agrarian society in the 20th century - are thinking of a manned-mission to the Moon. All while NASA is trying figure out how to shuttle men into orbit and back without killing everyone. We should be doing so much better by now.
posted @ Monday, February 21, 2005 10:13 PM