Comments on: ESA and Russia: Together into space?

By: c

Wed, 31 Aug 2005 17:38:23 +0000

Russia has the manned space flight engineering expertise to build such a shuttle. We don’t.

Without Western investment that expertise would disappear forever and be lost.

Russia is in on Galileo and ESA’s astronomy budget is considerable.

This is a prestige project for Russia not Europe and close cooperation will buy Russian Public favour.

By: Maynard Handley

Maynard Handley — Tue, 23 Aug 2005 19:09:44 +0000

“It’s worth it just to stay friends with the Russians, folks.
By giving them a big share of the pie on this prestige project we’ve reduced the risk of them turning off the gas taps.”

Come on, this is bullshit. You can give them a big share of a prestige project that is actually useful and buy their love while achieving something constructive.
An obvious choice is ITER.
Want something in the space category? How about Galileo? That’s militarily sensitive? OK, how about preparing a replacement for the Hubble which is due to expire — thanks precisely to this “man in space” stupidity.
Want something that involves more launches than the Hubble? How about these various satellite based gravity wave detection or gyroscope GR tests?

By: oscar

oscar — Tue, 23 Aug 2005 19:02:39 +0000

quote by c “By giving them a big share of the pie on this prestige project we’ve reduced the risk of them turning off the gas taps”

as i read it is it not the other way around? the russians are letting the europeans in on the presige project?

as for maynard, im no expert, but the follow thru benifits (technology) of space travel are there. among other things space travel has helped in the discovery of better composite materials, recycling and others. the building of a spce shuttle requires technical innovation. that technical inovation filters thru to the industrial complex after a time.

By: c

Tue, 23 Aug 2005 15:46:02 +0000

It’s worth it just to stay friends with the Russians, folks.

By giving them a big share of the pie on this prestige project we’ve reduced the risk of them turning off the gas taps.

By: Edward

Edward — Tue, 23 Aug 2005 15:44:32 +0000

“Explain to me again exactly what this will achieve”

Well since the Russians are having so many problems under water perhaps they are trying to verify whether the physical law that what can’t go down has to go up still holds :).

By: clicclic

clicclic — Tue, 23 Aug 2005 08:42:17 +0000

This site kicks serious ass.

Part of me wants to agree with the previous poster regarding manned presence in space. Is it really necessary? The romantic Apollo-was-cool idiots here in the USA will wax poetic about how important manned presence in space is. Actually, robots can do almost everything.

That said, landing again on the moon seems like a sensible goal for humanity. At some point. For what reason: astronomy mainly. Just set up the telescope and get the hell out of there.

anyway, I agree somewhat, but at the same time: if anyone knows how to get into space it’s not the Americans. I say Go Kliper

By: Maynard Handley

Maynard Handley — Tue, 23 Aug 2005 04:52:13 +0000

Oh god. Proof that paralyzing stupidity is not an American-only disease.
Explain to me again exactly what this will achieve that is of any use whatsoever. EXACTLY, as opposed to vague bullshit about experiments in zero-g or miraculous manufacture of biotech or all the other nonsense we’ve heard for ten years from Lockheed, Boeing, McDonnel Douglas and friends.