NASA

[King Rat]

Could anything be more cool than to take a trip into space? With the space shuttle set to blast off this afternoon one gets to wondering whether or not the cost is justified.

I believe it is. We are an exploring species and space is the last frontier isn't it? Besides, if they stopped funding the space program it isn't like a cent of that money would be returned to the taxpayer or go to a good cause. Politicians would steal it through a feeding frenzy of pork projects and pay raises. Right?

Or is private enterprise the answer? With the success last year of a private space flight, using a totally different approach to the friction/heat/breakthrough thing (I know you won't believe me but I can remember as a kid wondering why they didn't just ease back into the atmosphere) it would seem so. But do we want the corporate types zipping out into space and strip mining the moon?

No, I think NASA should live on. Sure, it is a bloated inefficient agency but even a government should have some fun. Without NASA kids couldn't dream of being astranauts.

[TF Admin]

Nasa is rsponsible for so many of the things we use everyday. Our space program really kicks butt.

I was watching the launch today thinking how utterly cool the Space Shuttle is, and then the announcer said the space shuttle is traveling at 14,000 mph or about 4 miles per second! PER SECOND! I cannot even imagine that. It amazes me to watch the driver's in NASCAR go 250 mph, but 4 miles per second is just plain mind boggling! Imagine how fast they will go 20 years from now!

TFADMIN

[King Rat]

A bit fast for NASCAR, TF. More like 190.

I read this morning that six pieces of something fell off the shuttle during launch. I heard the radio exchange between Houston and the crew when they saw the first piece and the ground control told them it was just ice - nothing to worry about. The crew sounded relieved. Now five more pieces and NASA says they don't know. How would you like to spend 13 days in space wondering if it was "anything to worry about"?

[krisco]

Spaceflight will never be a perfect thing, or perfectly safe. The very fact that they are trying to do something about this problem shows a resolve to make improvements. I am sure that every one of those astronauts would have proudly died for the advancement of the space program and our way of life.